Stakarnir Okkar defeated San Marino 1-0 in an international friendly on Friday, while Israel got the better of Albania 2-1 in their second Nations League match of the campaign.
Follow Us
Iceland will host Israel in a UEFA Nations League fixture at Laugardalsvollur Stadium on Monday. Both sides head into the tie on the back of narrow victories. Stakarnir Okkar defeated San Marino 1-0 in an international friendly on Friday, while Israel got the better of Albania 2-1 in their second Nations League match of the campaign. With two rounds of games completed, Iceland sit second in the League B Group 2 with two points, two points below leaders Israel. Meanwhile in four head-to-head encounters between the two teams, Israel have won two times, with the other two ending in draws. .
A few pics from a sunny sunday training ahead of our Monday night´s Nations League match in Reykjavík.
??⚽️?? pic.twitter.com/DKUaxd87d8— Knattspyrnusambandið (@footballiceland) June 12, 2022
With Russia having been thrown out of the competition due to military invasion of Ukraine, it left Israel as the favourites to claim top spot in the three-nation group. However, Iceland, who participated in the finals of 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia have enough quality in their ranks to challenge for a top spot. Stakarnir Okkar began their 2022-23 Nations League campaign with a 2-2 draw at Israel before playing out another 1-1 draw against Albania. With just two games remaining, Arnar Vidarsson’s side needs to earn a positive result on Monday to leapfrog Israel into the summit of the group. In the previous match against San Marino, which was a friendly, Aaron Thrandarsson netted an early goal to secure the victory. It was Iceland’s first win in its last nine games.
Israel, on the other hand, after the draw to Vidarsson’s side, clinched a come-from behind victory against Albania in their second group stage match last week. Albania took the lead through Armando Broja before Manor Solomon’s second-half brace secured three points for Israel. With just two games remaining, the Blue and Whites can almost secure first place, if they can earn three points in Reykjavik. Meanwhile the victory at Air Albania stadium ended Israel’s run of four successive defeats, and their solitary loss in five outings came by a 2-0 scoreline in a friendly with Germany.
Read more: A Croatian has won the Champions League for 10 successive seasons
After resting many of their big players against San Marino, Vidarsson is likely to start with a full-strength playing eleven at Israel. Last game’s goal-scorer Thrandarsson is pushing for a place in the starting eleven. Real Madrid’s Andri Gudjohnsen is expected to continue in the central defence. As for Israel, left-back Doron Leidner sustained an injury against Albania and therefore Sun Menahem is the most likely candidate to replace him.
Iceland probable starting lineup: Runarsson, Sampsted,Magnusson, Gretarsson, Olafsson, Johannesson, Bjarnason, Thrandarson, Sigurdsson, Gudjohnsen, Thorsteinsson.
Israel probable starting lineup: Marciano, Dasa, Vitor, Goldberg, Menahem, Jaber, Glazer, Peretz, Abada, Dabbur, Solomon
The UEFA Nations League fixture between Iceland and Israel will take place at the Laugardalsvollur Stadium and it will kickoff at 12:15 am IST on June 14, Monday
Select UEFA Nations League 2022-23 matches will be telecast live on the Sony TEN network in India. Besides, live streaming of these matches will be available on SonyLIV and JioTV apps and OTT platforms in India.
