History was made on Monday night as Iceland secured their spot in the World Cup by beating Kosovo 2-0 at Laugardalsvollur in Reykjavik, according to Sky Sports. Minutes before halftime, Gylfi Sigurðsson finished at close range to put the home team in front. Later in the second half, Berg Guðmundsson doubled the goal difference in the sixty-eighth minute and eventually sealed the victory for Iceland. Kosovo made little efforts in the match, creating few chances up front. With this victory, Iceland finished as leaders of Group I and ultimately qualified directly for next year's World Cup.
The group runners-up Croatia advanced to the playoffs contest as one of the best eight runners-up team. Meanwhile, Kosovo ended the campaign with only just one point. Here are the two things observed in the match.
Iceland controlled the game from start to finish
Iceland held more possession on Kosovo's half, creating several promising chances up front and in the process, they were able to notch in two goals in each half. Aside from scoring goals, Iceland absolutely dominated the midfield, distributing accurate passes and through balls. Their performance against Kosovo apparently showed how determined they are in facing any team that comes their way. On the other side, Kosovo players seemed timid playing against a resilient Iceland team and couldn't set up any opportunities in front of goal.
Even if they had drawn or won the encounter, Kosovo is already eliminated in the qualifying series. So far in their World Cup qualifying campaign, Kosovo only drew one match and lost the rest.
Gylfi Sigurðsson and teammates celebrates success
It was a moment of celebration for Iceland as skipper Aaron Gunnarsson and his teammates joined in with their home crowd's “now famous” Viking clap to salute victory at Laugardalsvollur.
This'll be the first time Iceland will be participating in the World Cup. In addition to this, they became the smallest country to progress to the FIFA Mondial with a population fewer than one million. Undoubtedly, Iceland head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson will be proud of his side, attaining such feat in the World of soccer. Hallgrimsson, who's also a part-time dentist, had earlier expressed concern that his players would struggle to motivate themselves for another qualifying campaign following their exploits at last year's Euro Championship in France. But now, all those doubts are now forgotten, having successfully clinched a place for next summer's World Cup. So far in their World Cup qualifying campaign, Iceland won seven matches and drew three.
