Reykjavík Grapevine - 07.06.2019, Blaðsíða 10

There are no two ways about it: the globe-
straddling, battle-hardened, foaming-
at-the-mouth, never-say-die berserker
glory of the Iceland men’s national football
team, under the tutelage of Swedish coach
Erik Hamrén, has dimmed.
Of course, any manager taking on a
new team needs time to bed in; to get to
know his players—in this case, an insane
tribe of vicious Ásatrú Vikings, all Hades-
bent on fulfilling an existential quest for
world domination. A manager needs time
to experiment with different troop forma-
tions and battlefield systems, and to find
that elusive Goldilocks zone and solve
the puzzle of tactics, personnel, and the
correct motivation (the promise of a half-
time leg of lamb and a victory Einstök has
been known to do the trick).
However, in the eight months and nine
matches since Hamrén took his place on
the fur-draped throne of Iceland’s great
hall, the horde have won one just one
game, and exhibited troubling form.
After their brave but ultimately doomed
debut World Cup run, Iceland lost a spate
of unfriendlies before crashing out of the
inaugural Nations League contest igno-
miniously.
Along the way, the proud, vicious,
barely-hinged warriors were emphatically
torpedoed by a trilogy of European foot-
balling titans in Belgium, Switzerland and
France. It was an ill-fated and unfortunate
sequence of games with barely any bright
points—and, to many loyal supporters, it
felt like a return of the bad old days.
The hard way
The prize of the Nations League was a
sought-after Euro 2020 qualification
place. Without it, Iceland are now engag-
ing in the familiar grind of doing things
the hard way. Drawn in a competitive
qualification group, finishing in the top
two qualifying spots to enter the tourna-
ment proper doesn’t seem like a given. The
team has failed to recapture the swash-
buckling, blood-splattered, gung-ho glory
of their Euro 2016 campaign, when they
captivated the world on an unlikely jour-
ney to the quarter finals, smiting England
out of contention
with the force of
a 100-foot wall of
s t a r v i n g bro w n
bears before even-
tually being bested
by the wine-swig-
ging ballerinas of
the host nation and
eventual runners-
up, France.
The first step
towards repeating
that semi-legendary
feat at Euro 2020
went well enough,
when Iceland swat-
ted aside the lightweight eleven fielded by
Andorra—one of the few minnow nations
in world football small enough to make
Iceland feel like a superpower. The next
match—a Stade de France blockbuster
against the old enemy France, who’d
become world champions in the mean-
time—went depressingly according to
form, with the unruly Gauls netting four
in a one-sided fixture.
The smitening
All of this leaves the horde in the position
they have, according to recent history,
preferred—with their backs to the wall, in
a do-or-die moment when potential glory
rests on a good old-fashioned comeback.
On June 8th, they’ll face off against the
eminently beatable Albania. On the 11th,
it will be a skirmish against Turkey that
could either seal Iceland’s fate, or propel
them into a commanding second place—
assuming that France do their duty and
dispatch the Turks with their trademark
half-cut theatrics.
For Hamrén, these games will prove
crucial. The Swede met with a luke-
warm response upon
his appointment, with
warning bells sounded
by those familiar with
his work, and he’s yet
to really make his mark
on the team. Few fresh-
faced young champions
have been seen storm-
ing onto the battlefield
during Hamrén’s reign,
and with a first eleven
consisting largely of
the grizzled veterans of
Iceland’s greying golden
generation, invigorating
the side with some new
talents could be his best move to correct
the course of the listing longship.
In the meantime, Iceland supporters
are preparing for the matches by sharpen-
ing their sacrificial blades and bringing
a goat in from the garden. International
fans should bring in two—they’ll need
that first one just to find a working
stream. Onwards!
Follow our live-tweets on Euro quali-
fication matchdays on Twitter at @
rvkgrapevine. Iceland's indomitable
and unstoppable march to the Euro
2020 trophy will continue throughout
2019, as Aron, Gylfi, Jóhann Berg and
the boys smite their way through all the
continents of the world, laying waste to
any team foolish enough to step into
their terrible path to glory.
#IcelandSmites
“Supporters are
preparing by
sharpening their
sacrificial blades
and bringing a
goat in from the
garden.”
FOOTBALL
10 The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 09— 2019
Wanted: Young
Smiters, Must Have
Own Battleaxe
Will Erik Hamrén field fresh-faced warriors in the battle for
Euro 2020 qualification?from an Icelandic point of view
Words: John Rogers Illustration: Lóa Hlín Hjálmtýsdóttir
It's do or die time for Iceland to get into Euro 2020