STIG Tofting's team-mates in the Denmark World Cup squad have railed against a Copenhagen-based magazine for publishing the shocking details of his parents' death 19 years ago.

The players have withdrawn their co-operation with the weekly publication Se & Hoer (Look and Listen) for running the article to coincide with Denmark's match against Senegal in Daegu - their second game in qualifying Group A.

Yesterday, Tofting was said to be incensed after being told of the magazine's plans to publish the story. It is understood he has never revealed the circumstances of the tragedy - his father shot his mother then turned the gun on himself - to his three young children who are at home in Denmark while their father is in South Korea.

The magazine's decision to run the article without Tofting's co-operation was condemned by other Danish journalists, who were aware of the player's personal grief but had followed an unwritten code not to invade his privacy.

A statement, read by team captain Jan Heintze accompanied by vice-captain Rene Henriksen and striker Ebbe Sand, said the players were outraged at the planned publication of the article.

The statement said: "It has come to our attention that a Danish weekly news magazine plans to publish a story of a highly personal nature about one of our team mates. The story is written without his participation, knowledge and acceptance.

"The story describes how Stig Tofting at the age of 13 tragically lost both of his parents. We, the players, coaches and administrators of the team, find it outrageous to publish this story at this time 19 years after the events took place. We are also upset about the fact that the article deprives Stig Tofting and his wife, Bettina, the chance to inform their children, aged seven, eight and 12, about the destiny of their biological grandparents and the relations within the family in their own words."

Tofting - the player Sam Allardyce describes as a "pocket battleship" - is regarded as a folk hero in his homeland, where he has repeatedly championed the cause of the little man in society.

The barrel-chested midfielder who joined Wanderers from German club SV Hamburg in a £250,000 transfer in February, started his working life as a forklift driver in his native Aarhus, where he was brought up by his grandmother after being orphaned at the age of 13 and became friendly with a local Hell's Angels gang.

His unconventional philosophy on life is summed up by the largest of the tattoos which adorn his torso, spelling out the legend "No regrets".

Tofting's reputation as a rebel was enhanced last year when he tried to open a cafe in Aarhus.

The local mayor refused permission because, it was widely believed, of the player's connection with the Hell's Angels.

The 32-year-old international was persuaded to drop his plan to stand as an independent in the local elections but public support was so high that the mayor was voted out anyway and his successor now says he is backing the cafe plan.

"I want to stand up for the rights of the little man," said Tofting at the time. "We should not be dictated to."

Just after the Denmark squad arrived at their World Cup training camp, Tofting was involved in a brawl with his international team-mate, Jesper Gronkjaer, when the Chelsea winger reacted angrily to being sprayed with water and having ice-cubes poured down his shorts.

The incident, in which blows were exchanged, came as no surprise to those close to the Denmark camp who regard Tofting and his midfield partner, Everton's Thomas Gravesen, as the practical jokers in the squad.