We landed in Copenhagen in the early afternoon and were bussed to a hotel in the city centre. The city was clean, bright, and full of bicycles. The players had a few hours to rest, to acclimatise, to reset. Then, in the early evening, we took the bus to the Brøndby Stadion for a light familiarisation session.
The stadium was empty, but you could feel the history of the place. It was a proper football ground, a tight, enclosed bowl with steep stands that felt like they were right on top of the pitch.
The ground staff were watching us from the tunnel, their arms folded, their expressions unreadable. The pitch was immaculate, a perfect, green carpet under the evening sky.
