Iceland manager, Heimir Hallgrimsson, said his entire squad is fit to play in Saturday’s World Cup opener against Argentina, which he declared “the biggest game in the history of Iceland.”
Midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson and captain Aron Gunnarsson have both been recovering from knee injuries, with Sigurdsson missing the last two months of the Premier League season with Everton and Gunnarsson working his way back from knee surgery in late April.
Sigurdsson played a part in Iceland’s two most recent friendlies, scoring in the 3-2 defeat to Norway on June 2 and then playing the first 67 minutes of the 2-2 draw with Ghana five days later, but Gunnarsson didn’t feature in either match.
“Everyone is ready to play and everyone wants to play,” Hallgrimsson said at a news conference. “It’s a headache which a [manager] has to work on.”
Gunnarsson, for his part, struck an optimistic tone in terms of his fitness.
“I’m feeling very good,” the Cardiff City midfielder said. “I’ve been practicing well and a lot, and getting my previous strength again.
“Of course, I was racing against time, but I was not worried I wouldn’t get it. You just have to do everything you have to do to become fit again when you have something like that. I’m ready for this game and I can’t wait to take the team out on the pitch — that is, if I get into the starting team.”