France leads Iceland 1-0.
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Antoine Griezmann was the two-goal hero as France came from behind to beat the Republic of Ireland in the last-16 and they will have to be patient again against Iceland – who have impressed with their counter-attacking. In open play they’re capable of playing it on the deck.
To get the job done, Deschamps will be relying on ex-Olympique Lyonnais and newly signed FC Barcelona stopper Samuel Umtiti. In the Group Stage, Iceland defeated Austria in the third match but went on to draw against Portugal (1-1) and Hungary (1-1).
It’s no secret at this point that Iceland – you already know all the factoids about their minuscule population, their traveling support, and their dentist co-manager – have sprung a few surprises (hello Roy) by making the most of a limited squad.
Iceland’s coaching duo do not have such forced selection posers to contend with but fatigue could be a concern, as the same XI have started all four matches in their campaign – getting through plenty of work due to having the lowest average possession count (29.7 per cent) of any team at Euro 2016.
The island nation’s outgoing president, Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, and interim prime minister, Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson, are scheduled to attend the biggest game in the national team’s history. Iceland would have to wait 16 years before becoming the smallest team to appear at the finals of a major tournament but have known since that day that they should not be afraid of any team. Their last 2 games have both ended in a 3-2 win for the French side.
“It’s not by chance Iceland have made it through”, France goalkeeper and captain Hugo Lloris said on Saturday.
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Germany striker Mario Gomez has been ruled out of the rest of Euro 2016 with a muscle tear in his right thigh. Kari Arnason has been the assist provider both times. “He put me in the best possible position and I tried to finish it as well as I could”.
