Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.09.2019, Blaðsíða 10

Oh yes. It’s the time of year when the
Icelandic diaspora converges on the
motherland and erupts like Eyjafjalla-
jökull all over its opposition. In recent
days, senior smiters and snow leopard
cubs alike have taken the Euro qualifi-
ers by storm, sweeping aside Moldova
and Luxembourg, respectively. As we
quickly forget the subsequent defeat
to Albania, here’s exactly how our boys
took another step towards continental
dominance, plus a special landmark
for Gylfi Sigurðsson:

Moldovans weep as usual
suspects scorch earth
World-renowned football maestros
Moldova were made to look like a
team of part-timers by Erik Hamrén’s
bloodthirsty clan on Saturday evening,
succumbing to a resounding 3-0 defeat
at Laugardalsvöllur. In the hammering,
Kolbeinn Sigþórsson conjured up his
first competitive Iceland goal since the
Euro 2016 quarter-finals, while Birkir
Bjarnason and Jón Daði Böðvarsson
put the icing and cherry on the cake.

Guðjohnsens unite
and smite
Sveinn Aron Guðjohnsen
joined up with his old man
for Iceland’s U-21s’ battle
with Luxembourg—and
it looks like being under
Eiður’s tutelage is paying
off. The Spezia forward fired
his side ahead from the penalty spot
early in the second half before Jón
Dagur Þorsteinsson and Willum Þór
Willumsson netted in quick succes-
sion. The father-son duo look set to
rise all the way to the top of Iceland’s
coaching and playing ranks, with Eiður
currently serving as assistant to Arnar
Viðarsson and Sveinn honing his trade
in Serie B.
Til hamingju með
afmælið to the OG
Iceland’s bewitching playmaker Gylfi
Sigurðsson turned 30 last week,
although his accelerated ageing should
slow down dramatically now that he’s
no longer coached by Sam Allardyce.
Over the last decade, “The Viking
Virtuoso” has established himself as a
lowkey Premier League great, notch-
ing 59 goals and 44 assists in 251
games. Gylfi still has plenty to give,
and will be central to Everton’s hopes
of finishing in the European spots this
season.
Albanian bloodbath sees
hunters become hunted
Aron Gunnarsson’s barmy army fell
to a shock defeat by Albania on Tues-
day, losing 4-2 at the Elbasan Arena.
Accomplished finishes from Gylfi
Sigurðsson and Kolbeinn Sigþórs-
son weren’t enough save the icemen
from the abyss. They'll face France
and Andorra at home next month.
Nothing less than a pair of smitings
will do if Iceland are to reach the 2020
finals the easy way.
Follow our live-tweets on Euro quali-
fication matchdays on Twitter at @
rvkgrapevine. Iceland's march to
the Euro 2020 trophy will continue
throughout 2019.
VONARSTRÆTI 3
101 REYKJAVÍK
IDNORVK.IS
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THE WATERSIDE TERRACE
AT IÐNÓ. ‘FOOD AND DRINKS
WITH A SPLASH OF SUNSHINE’
#IcelandSmites 10 The Reykjavík GrapevineIssue 16— 2019
Our Boys Unleash
Footballing
Eyjafjallajökull
It was a bloodbath.

THE REAL THING

The
Pepsi
League

The sore losers in FC Valur wants to
extend the football season in Ice-
land, which currently runs around
five months In a statement sent to
Visir.is, among others, the club said
that they want the same system as
in Denmark, where the six highest-
ranked teams in the league play in-
ternally while the six bottom teams
do the same to avoid falling down to
the second league. To do this, Vaur
proposes that the season should
be longer, and it would gain from it
because better teams would put up
a better show and play some “real
games” as they so modestly put it.
They also point out that team mem-
bers are on the payroll for up to 12
months every year, so they would
get more out of their gladiators
with this system. So their sugges-
tion is that the Pepsi league start
at the beginning of April and end
around the 10th of October.
Valur is in fifth place now, so
they would barely qualify for the
super round. Valur’s supporters are
very disappointed how the season
ended. Meanwhile, FC KR is crushing
their opponents and has a seven-
point lead on Breiðablik, who are
currently in second place in the
Pepsi League. VG
“Nothing less than
a pair of smitings
will do if Iceland
are to reach the
2020 finals the
easy way.”
FOOTBALL
Words:
Greig
Robertson
Illustration:
Lóa Hlín
Hjálmtýsdóttir