Unlike France, Iceland can go into this match without the pressure of a nation’s expectations on its shoulders. If the Icemen goeth out of the tournament at this stage, it will still be regarded by their fans as a wonderful success for this smallest of nations, competing at the Euros for the first time in its history.
But for the host nation France, a quarter-final loss against Iceland would be considered even more calamitous than England’s 2-1 loss to Iceland in the Round of 16 match.
Iceland surprised everyone in that game, and not so much in the way they defended. Six clean sheets in the qualifiers gave everyone fair warning that this team was well organised defensively. What surprised everyone about the England game was how, after going behind to an early penalty, Iceland struck back and posed a threat going forward, while remaining very solid at the back against the English attack.
France also had to come from behind in its Round of 16 game to win 2-1 against the Republic of Ireland. After a sluggish first half in which it trailed the Irish, coach Didier Deschamps’ half-time talk roused his troops and they played with greater intensity after the break. Deschamps deployed forward Antoine Griezmann in his more preferred central role in the second half and Greizmann responded with a brace, taking his tournament tally to three goals, equal top scorer.
Without the luxury of a star forward to rely on, Iceland’s six tournament goals have come from six different players, including two attackers, two midfielders and two defenders. Against England, it showed a strong physical presence, consistently winning second balls and possession in 50-50 tackles against more illustrious opponents.
Joint coaches Lars Lagerback and Heimir Hallgrimsson are expected to stick with the 4-4-2 formation which has served the team well up to this stage. The one possible weakness is the lack of depth in the squad, with the coaches so far being able to rely on the same starting 11 in each of its matches.
With a number of players on yellow cards going into this match, there is no real possibility of rotating the squad to prevent suspensions from taking their
toll.
Iceland coach Hallgrimsson believes that quarter-final opponent France, which has scored many of its goals in the second half, will maintain the pressure right to the end.
“That is why they are scoring at the end of games. Because they are really tiring their opponents. Everybody is playing against France with that in mind, not to concede. They keep on going until the end. They tire their opponents and at the end of the games they score vital goals. We have to concentrate the whole game, not 90 minutes but 95-96 minutes against France.”