Star player:
Christian Poulsen

Previous appearances:
1986 (second round), 1998 (quarter-finals), 2002 (second round).

How they qualified
UEFA
Hungary (a)    0-0
Portugal (a)    3-2
Malta (h)        3-0
Malta (a)         3-0
Albania (h)      3-0
Sweden (a)     1-0
Portugal (h)     1-1
Albania (a)       1-1
Sweden (h)     1-0
Hungary (h)     0-1

Chances:
Not the exciting prospect they were when Olsen was playing back in 1986, but a strong defensive base which includes Daniel Agger, Simon Kjaer and Poulsen in front of them will make them hard to beat. A good bet for a second-placed group finish and a last 16 exit.

Strange but true
Denmark won the 1992 Euro despite failing to qualify. Coach Richard Moller Nielsen was at home renovating his kitchen when the call came through that they were to replace Yugoslavia – banned because of civil war. He summoned the players from the beach – the team’s star Michael Laudrup refused the call – and the Danes completed a fairytale triumph with victory over Germany in the final.