Iceland players celebrate their second goal scored by teammate
Arnor Ingvi Traustason during their Euro 2016 Group F match against
Austria at Stade de France in Paris, on Wednesday
Iceland snatched a
stoppage-time winner to continue their fairytale story at Euro 2016 by
making it through to the last 16 after a deserved 2-1 victory against
Austria in their final Group F match on Wednesday.
Iceland end their section second with five points. Austria go out with one point.
In humid conditions at the Stade de France, the islanders had the
better chances in the early stages taking the lead in the 18th minute
when Jon Dadi Bodvarsson coolly steered the ball home after a flick-on
in the box.
Austria, who missed a penalty in the first half and laid siege to
Iceland's goal in the second, gave themselves hope when Alessandro
Schopf scored in the 60th minute, but Arnor Traustason secured the win
in stoppage time.
The Austrians had missed a great chance to equalise in the first half
when they were awarded a penalty after David Alaba appeared to be held
back in the box by left back Ari Skulason.
Aleksandar Dragovic sank to his knees in despair after hitting the
post from the spot, allowing Iceland to hold on to their lead until the
break.
Austria's Jakob Jantscher and Iceland's Aron Gunnarsson in action
Austria, who went into their
final group game after a defeat by Hungary and a draw with Portugal,
were hoping to survive the opening stage of a major tournament for the
first time since the 1982 World Cup but it was not to be.
They again lacked firepower and their key player, Alaba, who is used
to a more defensive role, looked lost in the playmaker position, which
he occupied throughout the tournament.
Iceland, by contrast, offered a spirited display and took their chances bravely.
With a population of about 330,000, which is roughly the size of
English city Leicester, home to the newly-crowned Premier League
champions, Iceland were cheered on by a strong contingent of noisy fans
wearing the side's blue colours.
The Iceland supporters were clearly outnumbered by the red army of
Austrian fans but most of the noise came from those in blue, who will
always remember the night when they witnessed arguably the most
remarkable feat in their country's sporting history.
No comments:
Post a Comment