Denmark might have been drawn in the 'group of death' but with long-serving manager Morten Olsen at the helm and Christian Eriksen pulling the strings in midfield, they are optimistic

This article is part of the Guardian's Euro 2012 Experts' Network, a co-operation between 16 of the best media organisations from the countries who have qualified for the finals in Poland and Ukraine. guardian.co.uk is running previews from two countries each day in the runup to the tournament kicking off on 8 June.

The tactics

Morten Olsen has been the manager of the national team since 2000 and he has always played a Dutch style of football, but in a 4-2-3-1 formation. He wants his team to have a lot of possession and seeks to control the tempo and rhythm in the game.

Within that system he likes to experiment by moving a central midfielder into central defence and starting the offensive play with only three players at the back.

He has also on occasion moved Nicklas Bendtner to the left wing and sometimes turned the triangle in the midfield upside down so the tactic becomes more like a 4-1-4-1.

Thomas Sorensen was the undisputed No1 goalkeeper even though he was second choice at Stoke City but his withdrawal gives a chance to Stephan Andersen. Anders Lindegaard was threatening Sorensen's place when he was playing for Manchester United but has been suffering with injuries and lost his place to David de Gea The full-backs are expected to be the former Everton, Blackburn and West Ham defender Lars Jacobsen, now with Copenhagen, on the right and Simon Poulsen on the left, even though Jacobsen suffered a bad thigh injury during the spring.

Against Portugal, however, Michael Silberbauer will almost certainly play at left-back as he has successfully looked after Cristiano Ronaldo twice with the national team in the past two years.

In central defence there will be Daniel Agger from Liverpool and Simon Kjaer, who has played for Roma last season but belongs to Wolfsburg. Agger has been a key player for Liverpool and is the captain for Denmark if Christian Poulsen does not play. Kjaer has had his problems, both in Rome and for Denmark, and his place could be threatened by Andreas Bjelland, who will join FC Twente from Nordsjaelland this summer.

William Kvist and Niki Zimling are the favourites for the starting places in central midfield. Kvist was captain for Copenhagen when they reached the last 16 in Champions League in 2010-11 and he has impressed during his first campaign at Stuttgart. In front of them Olsen will play Christian Eriksen, the 20-year-old Ajax midfielder, who is one of the biggest talents in European football. Several coaches from Ajax compare him to Wesley Sneijder as he is confident with both feet, has great vision, pace and dribbling skills. He is a real No10.

On the right wing will be Dennis Rommedahl, who has never had much success at his clubs but is a key player in Olsen's team because of his considerable speed. On the left there will be a battle between Michael Krohn-Dehli (Brondby), and Lasse Schone (who will join Ajax from NEC Nijmegen next season).

Bendtner will play up front on his own and he will carry a lot of responsibility on his broad shoulders because the other Danish strikers, such as Mads Junker (Roda) and Nicklas Pedersen (Groningen) are nowhere near his level.

Even though Denmark will be the underdogs in all three group matches, Olsen will not compromise his football philosophy. Holland, Portugal and Germany will be challenged in regards of possession and control of the game because that is the way both the players and Olsen like to play and how they think they can get results. Olsen was a player when Denmark became one of the most watchable sides in the world in the 1980s with players such as Preben Elkjaer, Frank Arnesen, Soren Lerby and Michael Laudrup in the team. That side played an offensive style of football with fluid movement and creative freedom and that laid the foundation for future Danish national teams.

Despite the tough group, Denmark will show up at the Euro with great confidence. They won the qualification group ahead of Portugal and were, in April, ranked the ninth-best team in the world by Fifa. That is the best ranking for a Danish national team since 1996.

Furthermore, Danish players historically thrive when they are the underdogs. That was the case when Denmark reached the semi-final in Euro 84 and the last 16 in the World Cup in 1986. It was also the case when Denmark became European champions in 1992 and when the team reached the quarter-finals in the World Cup in 1998 and the last 16 of the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004. That said, nobody in Denmark really expects the team to qualify from the "group of death."

Who is the player who is going to surprise everyone at the Euros?

Christian Eriksen. The-20-year old attacking midfielder is one of the major architects behind Ajax's two championships in the last two years and is chased by some of Europe's biggest clubs. Eriksen has got pace, great dribbling abilities and vision.

Who is the player who is going to disappoint the most?

Michael Krohn-Dehli. The Brondby midfielder was a big part of the successful Danish qualification campaign but he has been in disappointing form for his club. He has not been near the same decisive force that he was in 2011 and has been hindered by a knee injury. Krohn-Dehli has got one year left on his contract and is looking to use the Euros as a way to play abroad again. He has had a spell at Ajax.

What is the realistic aim for your team at the Euros and why?

To avoid humiliation and get a couple of points. Not only are the opponents difficult but the order in which Denmark meet them is terrible. To meet first Holland, then Portugal and finally Germany was such a bad draw that the Danes did not know whether to laugh or cry when it was made. If Denmark need to beat Germany in the last group game to go through, it is not a good scenario. We would need another 1992 miracle for that to happen when a group of players went straight from their holidays to win the European Championship in Sweden.

Troels Henriksen is a football writer for Jyllands-Posten

Click here to read the profile of Nicklas Bendtner

Click here to read the secrets behind the Denmark players

This article has been updated to reflect Thomas Sorensen's withdrawal from Euro 2012