Kasper Schmeichel is set to miss this weekend’s clash with Hearts after suffering an injury during Denmark’s 5-3 aggregate defeat to Portugal in the UEFA Nations League play-off on Sunday.
The 38-year-old Celtic goalkeeper visibly struggled through extra time in Lisbon, after Denmark had already used all five substitutes, forcing him to continue despite being injured.
The incident that may have aggravated his injury came during a delayed offside situation. As Diogo Jota took a shot on goal, Schmeichel made an instinctive save—one that could have been avoided had the flag been raised in time. The risk taken in that moment, given the apparent obvious offside, has become a point of frustration, particularly with the modern trend of keeping flags down to await VAR reviews.
The unnecessary nature of the save drew attention after Schmeichel let out a scream following an earlier effort, signalling that he was already playing through the pain.
Danish media reports claim Schmeichel was later seen at the airport with his arm in a sling and have speculated that he could be out until September, though the national team boss admitted that these murmurings are just that, with the medical team still assessing the ‘keeper.
Denmark boss Brian Riemer addressed the issue, stating that further medical assessments are ongoing and that the full extent of the injury is not yet known. He did, however, confirm that the Celtic stopper will not feature in this Saturday’s match against Hearts.
He told TV 2 Sport: “The status is that Kasper is injured.
“And right now we are doing the in-depth studies, which should provide an indication of whether we are talking about a shorter, medium or long injury period. I don’t think there is any doubt that he will not play this weekend.”
With Schmeichel sidelined, Viljami Sinisalo is expected to make his second appearance for the Hoops and his league debut.
