Four-goal Armenia devastate Denmark

Armenia ended a run of four straight defeats in FIFA World Cup qualifying Group B in considerable style, scoring two early goals as they overwhelmed Denmark 4-0 in Copenhagen.

With the match barely half a minute old, Yura Movsisyan silenced the Parken crowd with a shock blow from which the Danes never really recovered. Aras Özbiliz doubled the visitors' lead on 19 minutes, before second-half strikes from Movsisyan and, late on, Henrikh Mkhitaryan completed a sensational victory.

Certainly, few inside the ground could believe they were watching Movsisyan and company celebrating so soon after kick-off, after his angled left-footed shot flew past Denmark goalkeeper Stephan Andersen and into the bottom-right corner for an immediate breakthrough.

When Özbiliz arrowed his own left-footed effort in from the inside-right channel midway through the opening half, the danger from Vardan Minasyan's team became very real, however. It sparked something of a resurgence from the hosts as Dennis Rommedahl and Christian Eriksen both went close, yet Armenia – humbled 1-0 at home by Malta just four days ago – took a 2-0 cushion into the dressing room.

Indeed, they never relinquished control of their advantage, and 14 minutes into the second half Movsisyan produced a carbon copy of his opener to kill off any Danish spirit. Mkhitaryan was the man to put the final nail in the coffin of Morten Olsen's men, showing smart footwork before steering beyond Andersen to cap a famous win. The result lifted Armenia above the Danes and into fourth place in the six-nation table.