The Iceland manager has revealed how he motivated his squad to defeat England at the Euro 2016 competition, revealing that he had branded them the “most overrated national team” ahead of Iceland’s 2-1 victory against them at the tournament.
Eidur Gudjohnsenc made the admission following Iceland’s victory against Finland last night, wherein they snagged another surprising win after netting two goals in the final six minutes of the game to make it 3-2, stating that his former co-manager Lars Lagerback had initially pointed out England’s failures as a national team.
Gudjohnsenc said: “This is something Lars Lagerbeck pointed out, [that] in recent years we are playing against the most overrated national team side – looking back it is true.”
He added: “There is always so much pressure for them to do well at a major championship and they haven’t for a long time.”
Iceland knocked England out of Euro 2016 and progressed through to the quarter-finals, with manager Roy Hodgson stepping down as a result of the humiliating defeat. He was replaced by Sam Allardyce, who has since been removed from his post as a result of an undercover report by The Telegraph, in which the ‘paper revealed that “Big Sam” was involved in a scandal that saw him arranging for firms to forego the FA’s transfer regulations for huge sums of money.
Gudjohnsenc’s comments will be yet another blow to an embarrassing era for the England national squad, as they continue to struggle to put in the performances their supporters suspect of them. With them now struggling for a manager following Allardyce’s scandal, it remains to be seen what lies in store for the team in the future.
Via BBC
