Neestrup: Sold-out Parken can help us in FCM showdown
Jacob neestrup says his F.C. Copenhagen players can benefit from a sold-out Parken Stadium for this evening's table-topping clash against FC Midtjylland.
There are just three games remaining in the Danish Superliga title race and goal difference is all that splits FCK and FCM in second and third place. Brøndby sit top by a point but have played one game more than FCK and FCM.
Indeed, the Lions come into tonight's 8pm kick off having beaten Brøndby 3-1 at the weekend.
And Neestrup expects another big performance from his side.
"It will be a high-level match with enormous intensity and excitement, in the style of the one we have just been a part of at Brøndby Stadium," says Neestrup.
"Two teams that will try to find a balance between shutting down the opponent's strengths and at the same time relying on the things that you are good at. It will definitely be a battle, with nerves and plenty of intensity for the entire 90-odd minutes.
"We have to play carefully in terms of how we defend and what we do when we lose the ball, because FCM are an opponent with a good transition game. They are strong at set pieces but of course can do more than just that. Especially the players they have in their front line can hurt anyone if they have a good day.
"On the other hand, we have to be good at pushing forward when we win the ball and use our speed when we need to, while we also want to have more calm in the game than we had on Sunday."
There are four teams in contention for the Danish Superliga title this season. Brøndby's win over FC Nordsjælland on Wednesday means they sit a point ahead of FCK and FCM, while Nordsjælland are only three points behind.
"There may be four teams that can win the Superliga but for us it's all about the game we have to play on Thursday," adds Neestrup.
"We have been good at keeping the focus on ourselves and being in the moment when things have gotten a little testing. We have prepared well for recent games and we have done the same for this one. That is the only thing we are focused on.
"A sold out Parken is fantastic. It is so important that the fans are here again to give us the extra push that can hopefully mean that we take three points away from Thursday evening."