Mikkel Damsgaard was scouted by Nordsjaelland, in his native Denmark, as a child and worked his way through the club’s youth ranks to the first team by the time he was 17, when he was handed his debut by current Denmark head coach Kasper Hjulmand.

Over the 2017/18 season, and the two that followed, he gradually developed and demonstrated his versatility in a variety of positions, from centre-midfield to centre-forward.

It was in 2019/20, however, that he excelled. Primarily deployed on the left wing, Damsgaard scored 11 goals and assisted another seven in 37 games in all competitions. That sparkling form attracted interest from abroad and, in February 2020, his summer transfer to Sampdoria was confirmed.

He was afforded plenty of playing time after he joined in the July and ended his first season in Italy having made the joint-second most appearances in the squad. His senior Denmark debut, and two further caps followed, before he was included in Hjulmand’s squad for the delayed Euro 2020.

Damsgaard started all bar one of Denmark’s six games in their run to the semi-final and - after becoming his nation’s youngest scorer in European Championship history when he scored against Russia aged 20 years and 353 days - he hit the headlines when he struck a stunning dipping free-kick to open the scoring in the eventual 2-1 defeat to England.

When he returned to club football, he was one of the first names on the team sheet, until October when, following an initial thigh complaint, doctors found Damsgaard was suffering from arthritis in his right knee, which he discussed in the Long Read, and was something that ultimately kept him out of action for a six-month period.

Having returned to fitness, Brentford spotted his potential and brought him in on a five-year contract.

Across his first two seasons in west London, the 23-year-old was primarily introduced from the bench, before starting five of the final seven Premier League games during the 2023/24 campaign, giving a glimpse of what is sure to follow.