Denmark have booked their place at next year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia following their 5-1 thrashing of the Republic of Ireland in Dublin in what was the second leg of their World Cup playoff.

Denmark failed to secure any home advantage in the first leg as both sides played out a goalless draw but that didn’t come back to haunt them after they produced a five-star performance to beat their hosts and seal a return to the World Cup having missed the last edition in Brazil.

They didn’t have it their own way as they had to overturn an early goal scored by Republic of Ireland defender Shane Duffy. The lead was turned on its head with two goals in three first half minutes from Andreas Christiansen and Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Christian Eriksen.

The Danes continued from where they left off with Ireland’s chief tormentor Eriksen adding two further strikes to take the matchball before former Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner wrapped up the comprehensive 5-1 victory for his side.

With their exit at the playoff stage, the Republic of Ireland have now failed to qualify for the last four World Cup tournaments as they join other Home Nation rivals like Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland to sit out Russia 2018.