Switzerland told to be on their guard against Iceland

Switzerland have arguably staked the strongest claim to Group A supremacy but that head start could swiftly become a false start if they are not careful against Iceland on Tuesday.

The two teams' coaches agreed in their pre-match briefings that, given the strength of the competition here in Denmark, narrow margins will decide all the games. So a Swiss side buoyed by beating the Danish hosts on Saturday could just as easily be brought down by Iceland in Aalborg, despite the Icelanders' deflating weekend defeat by Belarus.

Switzerland coach Pierluigi Tami is therefore demanding the same focus that earned the 1-0 victory against Denmark at the same venue: "It will be difficult against Iceland because they have good forwards and to win this match we need to use our heads. We have to stay focused on our jobs, because every match has its own story."

While Tami singled out midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson as a danger, he sees the Icelandic threat as a collective one – first because they "have nine players who play in a foreign league and have good experience", and also because "they don't have a player like Shaqiri." Playmaker Xherdan Shaqiri was the undoubted Swiss hero against Denmark, with his fine individual goal complementing an effervescent display.

Tami is nonetheless wary of what might happen when his side lose possession. "We have to be careful not to give the ball away in midfield, because Iceland are relying on us failing in order to counter," warned the coach, who has defender Fabio Daprelà – an unused substitute versus the Danes – available after a slight hamstring injury. The trainer also pointed to Iceland's goalscoring threat, but that is precisely the source of the conundrum facing his opposite number Eyjólfur Sverrisson.

The team that top-scored with 33 strikes in ten qualifying fixtures failed to take a handful of excellent opportunities before succumbing 2-0 late on to Belarus. "We need to take our chances," Sverrisson said. "We had absolute control and good opportunities that we would normally take. We scored a lot of goals in qualifying, the most in the competition."

Another contributory factor to Iceland's disappointing dawn at this, their first U21 final tournament, was the sending-off of Aron Gunnarsson. Given those circumstances, the coach remains "happy with the team and how they responded to a lot of pressure". "It's our first time taking part in such a big event and it's a learning experience for the players," he emphasised. "The reaction has been positive. It was a difficult start but that will bring us together."

With Gunnarsson suspended, there is a defensive midfield vacancy to fill, with right-back Eggert Jónsson and anchorman Gudmundur Kristjánsson possible deputies. Left-winger Johann Gudmundsson trained on Tuesday after injuring his shoulder against Belarus; Alfred Finnbogason is on standby.

Sverrisson's prediction? "We've seen in this competition that all eight teams are even and it comes down to your form in the game as well as the small things that determine results."