Reykjavík Grapevine - 15.06.2018, Síða 24

24 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 10 — 2018
“Generation after
generation, we’ve
had to stick together
to survive in hard
conditions, darkness,
wind and freezing
cold. That breeds
togetherness and
willingness to stand up
for each other when it
really counts. I’m proud
of those roots.”
Aron Einar Gunnarsson is, to many,
the face of Icelandic football. The talis-
manic captain of the national team,
he’s an imposing presence on the field;
a bearded, tattooed midfielder with
a hard-tackling style that Cristiano
Ronaldo probably still remembers.
His impact on Iceland’s mentality
and performance is undeniable. While
Aron doesn’t have the same kind of silky
skills as footballing stars like Cristiano,
Lionel Messi, or Iceland’s flair attacker
Gylfi Sigurðsson, he personifies the
committed, determined, never-say-die
mentality that has driven the team’s
recent success.
This mentality has endeared Aron,
and the Iceland team, to international
football lovers. When they defied
expectations to reach the quarter finals
of the Euro 2016 tournament, it was
Aron who, in euphoric disbelief, led the
supporters in a rendition of the “Viking
clap” that’s since become iconic.
It was the kind of moment that
reminds football fans of all stripes why
they watch the game at all, and has led
to a swell of support ahead of Iceland’s
first ever foray onto the biggest stage
of all: the FIFA World Cup.
Standing
together
Aron is in relaxed and confident
form before the journey to Russia.
He contemplates the team’s relation-
ship with the fans—and, writ large,
the nation of Iceland as a whole—as
factors in the team’s visible on-field
motivation.
“Our deep connection with the
Icelandic supporters is something that
I don’t believe any other team has,”
says Aron. “I know that I speak for all
of the players in the team when I say
that those who follow us wherever we
go have a real place in our hearts. They
give their all in supporting us, and
they give us a real boost. We’re a small
nation, and togetherness is something
we know by heart. We are not about to
roll over and let our people down.”
For Aron, this closeness is a part of
the Icelandic psyche. Due to the rela-
tively small amount of Icelanders there
are in the world, it becomes second
nature to find forms of cooperation
in order to collectively endure living
together on the edge of the Arctic
Circle.
“Generation after generation, we’ve
had to stick together to survive in hard
conditions, darkness, wind and freez-
ing cold,” he says. “That breeds togeth-
erness and willingness to stand up
for each other when it really counts.
I’m proud of those roots. I’m proud
to belong to a country built by hard
workers who did what they needed to
do to survive. Whenever I pull on the
national team shirt it reminds me to
appreciate where I am from and to be
grateful to those who were here before
me.”
Old fire
This kind of intensity does not go
unnoticed. After Iceland’s unforget-
table showing at Euro 2016, Aron’s
impassioned performances put him on
the radar of the world’s media, leading
the Guardian newspaper to describe
him as “the obvious leader of the
team, he’s ambitious, passionate and
driven, and brings a combative style to
Iceland’s play.”
“This fire is not new,” says Aron.
“I’ve had it since I first entered a foot-
ball pitch. I will always give my all,
wherever I play, and I’ve always had
a good connection with teammates,
coaches, and fans at all my teams. This
is common with many of us Icelandic
players. Ask any manager who has had
an Icelander on their team. He will tell
you that we always give 100%.”
Living identity
This much is certainly true of Heimir
Hallgrímsson, the manager of the
Icelandic team. Watching the team
train at Laugardalsvöllur stadium
ahead of the trip, a look of fondness
crosses Heimir’s face when asked about
Aron’s qualities.
“Aron is important to us in all
areas,” he says. “As a person, and as
a captain, he is vital. He’s a shining
example of what we would like to stand
for. What he stands for as a player…
he’s our living identity. He’s disciplined
in everything he does. He’s a shining
example, off the pitch, of how players
should behave and how they should
support each other; on the pitch, he’s
vital for organising the team. He knows
the position of every player, and he’s
demanding. And on top of that, he’s
just a very good football player.”
World stage
These leadership qualities have reaped
dividends. After a qualifying process
that saw Iceland top their group—
which included Croatia, Turkey and
fellow Nordic nation Finland—Iceland
are now hoping to continue their
winning streak.
The team were pulled in a difficult
group with Argentina, Croatia, and
Nigeria, but Aron is optimistic about
Iceland’s chances of progressing to the
knockout stages. “Everyone saw how
good a team we really are during quali-
fying,” he says. “Euro 2016 was no fluke.
We earned our right to play there, and
we certainly earned our right to play at
the World Cup. We won our group, and
we are not done yet. We’re a team, and
we have shown that we can perform
consistently. Any team that thinks they
can steamroll us is in for a rude awak-
ening.”
One of the biggest tasks on the
menu is containing Lionel Messi, argu-
ably the world’s greatest attacking
player. “We managed to keep Cristiano
Ronaldo fairly quiet at the Euros, so
why should Messi get a free pass?” says
Aron. “I'm under no illusions about our
opponents. We’ll play against the best
of the best in the world, and we respect
that. The question is, do they respect
us? Underestimating us can prove to be
a banana peel. Just ask England.”
Maximum
happiness
Indeed, the star-studded England
team are very well aware of the team’s
fighting spirit. When Iceland bested
them in the last sixteen at Euro 2016,
the emotional outpouring of the after-
math showed how much the game
meant to the players. The post-match
“We managed to
keep Cristiano
Ronaldo fairly
quiet at the
Euros, so why
should Messi get
a free pass?”
Smite
The
World!
Aron Gunnarsson
captains Iceland into
the World Cup
Words: John Rogers
Photos: Art Bicnick