Celebration has just started in Iceland, after their national team defeated England in the round of 16 to get a spot in the quarter-final of the on going Euro 2016. Iceland a nation not considered to be a football nation with a population of 330,000 people humiliating a football nation such as England with a gigantic population of 53 million people.
It was an unbelievable result for bookmakers and pundits, but this generation of England’s national team have wiped the tears on the face of the Icelanders, replacing it with joy that runs through their mind as it will forever remain historical and significant, from generation to generation.
According to uefa.com,supporters filled the city centre in Reykjavik. Thousands and thousands showed up to watch the game. You can possibly imagine the atmosphere at the final whistle. Fireworks were set off; sheer joy would be an understatement. It was the same at the Stade de Nice. There were 3,000 fans at the round of 16 match; it sounded more like 30,000.
Airlines have already started to organise extra flights to Paris before this weekend’s quarter-final (quarter-final!). Fair to say there will be an invasion of Icelanders. One man said he would sail to Paris if necessary. People will do whatever is in their power to be here on Sunday to face the hosts.
The 2-1 result aside, this was a much-improved performance from the side. As usual they defended superbly, but their attacking play was a lot better than recent games. “We have definitely given priority to that. We tried to be a little cooler when we won the ball. We’ve taken small steps but we will have to improve more,” says joint-coach Lars Lagerbäck.
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