Nørgaard and Denmark firing on and off the pitch

"Dark horses" according to coach Thomas Frank at the beginning of the tournament, Denmark have since proven themselves to be among the thoroughbreds of the UEFA European Under-17 Championship.

Three wins from three Group A games have set Frank's team up for a semi-final meeting with Germany in Novi Sad on Thursday, themselves runners-up in Group B with a modest four points. The third of Denmark's pool victories was a 1-0 triumph over France which came courtesy of substitute Christian Nørgaard's splendid solo run and finish.

"The ball came out to me, I ran at the defence and suddenly I was in front of the goal," the Lyngby BK midfielder told UEFA.com. "The mood's very good because it was a very good victory and we have nine points from three matches. That is exceptionally good from a tough group. The coaches are very happy because even though we dreamt of getting to the semi-finals, it's a big surprise for all of us."

Unexpected it may have been, but the convincing nature of their qualification has promoted many to view Denmark as among the favourites now that the tournament has reached its business end. Nørgaard is not so sure, however. "I think we can go all the way but I would still say that Germany are the favourites as they are such a big nation," he said. "We like to be underdogs, we like to surprise and I think we will see a surprise against Germany too."

Clinical on the pitch, Denmark's No7 revealed that he and his team-mates have also been honing their accuracy off it. "One day we went out and went shooting," he said at their Novi Sad base. "Kenneth Zohore, our big striker, he was the best. We also went to the fort [Petrovaradin Fortress] to eat. It's good to do something other than football. We relax in our rooms, watching movies and videos of the matches we've been playing.

"We play for about ten different clubs so we don't see each other every day," he added. "We met as a group maybe one and a half years ago and since then we have become very, very good friends both on the field and off it. It's a big experience. Some of us have played in front of the TV cameras, but not everyone has had that experience. We are very good friends and there is a very good harmony in the group. We all enjoy it."