AC Horsens are back in the Danish Superliga after a season away, and it’s been a rude awakening. Niki Zimling, appointed head coach in April in his first senior managerial role, is learning on the job. The early signs are worrying. A trip to MCH Arena to face Midtjylland on 2 August was always going to be brutal, and Horsens looked every bit the promoted side fighting for survival. They’re compact, organised, but short on quality in the final third. At home they’ll be braver, but that bravery can leave gaps. Horsens are the kind of team that will scrap for every point, yet they lack the firepower to turn draws into wins against better sides.

Lyngby BK, meanwhile, are also back in the top flight, but they look sharper. They’ve got a blend of experience and youthful energy. The midfield pairing of Lauge Sandgrav and Mathias Hebo Rasmussen is the engine room — solid, mobile, and capable of controlling tempo. Up front, Asbjorn Bondergaard and Frederik Gytkjaer bring a real goal threat. Gytkjaer is a proven scorer at this level, and Bondergaard’s movement creates space. Lyngby’s recent form, though patchy, shows they can compete. They lost to Copenhagen away, but that’s no disgrace. They’ll have targeted this fixture as winnable.