Hosts France wary of Iceland pitfall

Do you agree or have they missed the mark? “I would like it to end like it ended with Leicester”, he said.

Iceland’s main TV provider created a special soccer-only channel for the European Football Championships. They know they are not going to get that many corners in a game and they compensate that by using the throw-in as a set piece.

France vs Iceland is another David vs Goliath battle, hopefully this time though the giant will prevail.

“He’s a key player for us”. Iceland’s most famous player is a veteran striker, people familiar of course with former Barcelona and Chelsea man Eidur Gudjohnsen.

Deschamps must rejig his team today to compensate for the loss of N’Golo Kante and Adil Rami through suspension, with the Crystal Palace midfielder Yohan Cabaye and the uncapped Samuel Umtiti expected to start.

The rest of the team is ready to fight again and reach the semi-finals.

All Les Bleus’ victories at this tournament have been secured late.

But as inconceivable as it seems that Iceland could kick France out of its own tournament this weekend, the giants of European soccer should know by now that dismissing an outsider on a streak like Iceland’s is a risky game.

FRANCE PLAYER TO WATCH: Antoine Griezmann – He took a couple of games to get going but showed against Ireland what an incredibly risky player he can be.

“Because he hasn’t scored for two games some people might criticize him and say, ‘(Antoine) Griezmann’s scoring all the goals, ‘” Evra said.

“I think they’re showing great attitude and desire to win football matches”. He is physical and works very hard to tackle opponents. “If they’re here it’s because they deserve to be and have quality”, he said. The English never seemed likely to come back after Kolbeinn Sigthorsson scored what proved to be the winning goal. Another unbelievable statistic: About 27,000 Icelanders, or 8 percent of the country’s total population of about 330,000, attended the England game. The players hold the ball better, press more and show more patience in possession when building attacks.

Aside from a cruel own goal in their group-stage draw with Hungary, which would nearly certainly have resulted in a score anyway, Saevarsson has been one of Iceland’s most consistent performers at the Euros, playing every minute of every match. “You dream big. But we are realistic, we can play the best game of our lives and still lose against France”.

“France can not lose the game, it would be disgusting for the French nation”.

Hallgrimsson gives the reason behind players playing better with each passing game, saying, “I think a big part of why we are always playing better and better is that the players are more relaxed in every game and have grown in confidence”.

LIKELY ICELAND XI: Halldorsson, Skulason, Arnason, Sigurdsson, Sævarsson, Bjarnason, Gunnarsson, Sigurdsson, Gudmundsson, Bodvarsson, Sigþorsson. Iceland is observed to be a motivated and organized team who knows how to learn from their mistakes. He has produced some magical moments, while his free-kicks and eye for a pass are just as important as his goals.