Next up in our analysis of the Euro 2016 contenders is Iceland. Under the duel management of Lars Lagerback and Heimir Hallgrimsson, their tournament gets underway with a clash against Group F favourite Portugal on Tuesday June 14 at 8pm before they face Hungary four days later at 5pm and Austria on Wednesday June 22 at 5pm.
Road to Qualification
Iceland arrive in France as runners-up of qualifying Group A after finishing two points behind the Czech Republic. In a table that also included the likes of Turkey and Holland, the Scandinavians won six and drew two of their ten fixtures, beating the Dutch both home and away as they secured qualification with two matches to spare.
Despite a run of tricky opponents, they scored on 17 occasions and failed to find the net just twice. At the back, Iceland were impressively resilient – conceding only six times, they collected six clean sheets.
The Iceland managers are sticklers for a 4-4-2 formation and tend to rely on the same batch of tried and trusted regulars – they used just 20 players over qualifying, the joint-fewest tally of any team.
Since the turn of the year, however, their form over friendlies has been somewhat patchy, winning three – against Finland (1-0), Greece (3-2) and Lichtenstein (4-0 last night) and losing on four occasions. This saw them defeated by United Arab Emirates (1-2), United States (2-3), Denmark (1-2) and Norway (2-3), with just two clean sheets accrued in their last 11 fixtures.
Most Appearances Karl Arnason, Birkir Bjarnason, Kolbeinn Sigthorsson, Ragnar Sigurdsson, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Ari Freyer Skulason (10), Jon Bodvarsson, Aron Gunnarsson, Hannes Halldorsson (9), Birkir Saeversson (8), Johann Gudmundsson, Emil Hallfresson (7)
Most goalsGylfi Sigurdsson (6), Kolbeinn Sigthorsson (3), Birkir Bjarnason, Aron Gunnarsson (2)
Most assists Ari Freyer Skulason (3), Birkir Bjarnason (2)
The Key Targets
With six strikes to his name over qualifying, Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson carries his nation’s main threat in the final third. The playmaker arrives off the back of 11 goals and four assists in the Premier League last term and leads the way for shots and efforts on target for Iceland. Priced at 8.0, Sigurdsson – who is number one for dead-ball duties – also created more chances than any team-mate despite earning just a single assist in qualifying. Stationed in a central midfield berth, he also led the way for successful tackles, which heightens his appeal in the DraftKings game. Sigurdsson currently sits in 4% of teams and is the only Iceland player with more than 1% ownership.
Striker Kolbeinn Sigthorsson offers a secure option up front with a very respectable scoring record on the international stage. Although he scored just three times on the road to France, the Nantes frontman has netted 20 times in 39 appearances for Iceland, including a strike against Lichtenstein last night. At a price of 7.0, he fired more efforts inside the box than Sigurdsson over qualifying.
Birkir Bjarnason grabbed two goals and as many assists from his role on the left wing during the qualifiers. Priced at 6.5 in Uefa, he offers a reasonable dual threat and produced double-figures for both efforts on goal and chances created during his ten appearances in qualifying.
Left-back Ari Skulason looks the likeliest source of points at both ends of the pitch. Second to Sigurdsson for cross and chances created, he bagged more assists (three) than any Iceland player in qualifying and also fired more attempts on goal than any defensive team-mate. At a price of 5.5, though, some may find him a little pricey.
The Long Shots
Aron Gunnarsson (6.5) found the net on a couple of occasions and produced ten attempts on goal in qualifying – only three players manager more. The Cardiff midfielder could also be one to monitor for DraftKings – he sat in the top three for successful tackles and interceptions.
Alfred Finnbogason comes in at just 5.5 in Uefa after starting just one of the qualifiers. Having featured in the first XI in each of the last two friendlies, he’s picked up in form and bagged a goal and assist against Lichtenstein last night – given that Iceland have scored at least twice in four of their last five, he could appeal for those looking to take a punt on a budget striker.
At the back, a first clean sheet in six attempts coincided with the return of Hannes Halldorsson (5.0) between the posts on Tuesday. First-choice keeper during qualifying, he has now recovered from injury and his re-installment to the XI raises major question marks over the pitch time of cheaper (4.5) Ogmundur Kristinsson, who had started six straight friendly in Halldorsson’s absence. For those unwilling to gamble on the keeper situation, Sverrir Ingi Ingason sets you back 4.5 and has started the last three at centre-half, scoring on two of those occasions.
Euro 16 Statistics Now Available
Our Members Area now contains full Opta data for all the 24 participating nations in Euro 16. It includes statistics covering the Qualifying Rounds and all the friendlies for the last 12-months – we will also be providing statistics throughout the tournament from June 10, updated minutes after the final whistle of each match.
This Euro 16 statistics are provided in addition to the regular Premier League season package. New memberships are now available for the pre-season price of just £12.50 and will expire on June 1 2017. Full details on the benefits of membership can be found here.
Registered user can upgrade here. New users can register as a member here.
Further Analysis
Group A – Albania, France, Romania, Switzerland.
Group B England, Russia, Slovakia, Wales.
Group C Germany, Northern Ireland, Poland, Ukraine.
Group D Croatia, Czech Republic, Spain, Turkey.
Group E Belgium, Italy, Republic of Ireland, Sweden.
Group F Austria
