With less than 50 days to go until Euro 2016 kicks off, PortuGOAL will be taking a look at Portugal’s Group F opponents this week.
The Seleção kick off their campaign against tournament debutants Iceland in Saint-Étienne on 14 June.
The Nordic island nation may be newcomers to the European Championship party, but the fact Iceland helped knock out the Netherlands in the qualifying phase should be warning enough for Portugal not to take them lightly.
Icelandic journalist Vidir Sigurdsson describes the euphoria that greeted the nation’s qualification and gives us a brief lowdown on the team.
What was the reaction in Iceland upon qualifying for a first ever tournament?
It was pure ecstasy, as you can imagine. Of course, after a great start and three wins in the first three matches, there were expectations already in the autumn of 2014, and they grew with each game, as Iceland was always number one or two in the group.
When Iceland beat the Netherlands in Amsterdam three thousand travelling fans followed the team to that match, which is around 1% of the entire country’s population.
After a draw against Kazakhstan at home in the next match, Iceland had qualified with still two matches to go and the team was celebrated wildly when they arrived in the centre of Reykjavík after the match.
Who are Iceland’s star players?
Gylfi Sigurdsson from Swansea, with 11 goals in the English premier league this season, must be rated as the star of the team, and the most important player. But it has been the team play which has brought these unexpected results.
What is Iceland’s style of play and usual formation? Would you describe them as more of an attacking team or more of a defensive team?
Iceland always play 4-4-2 with strong overall play. They defend well, but also like to keep the ball and have been likely to score goals in every match.
What are Iceland’s strong points?
They are good at set-pieces where Sigurdsson is a key factor.
What are Iceland's weak points?
The defence can be suspect, especially when open to counter-attacks.
What was the reaction to the Euro 2016 draw from Icelandic fans and the media?
Fairly good. Most Icelandic fan and media are sure that the team has a chance to qualify from this group.
How do you think Group F will finish?
Portugal – Austria – Iceland – Hungary.
Who do you think will win Euro 2016 and why?
That‘s a tricky one! I think Germany will end up as winners. It’s a strong team with good support and the experience of winning the World Cup two years ago.
Our thanks to Vidir Sigurdsson. You can follow him on twitter @vidirsig.
Related: Portugal's Euro 2016 opponents - the lowdown on Austria
Related: Euro 2016 - the lowdown on Portugal opponents Hungary
