A convincing win against Kazakhstan on Tuesday evening put Iceland’s Under 21 football team at the top of Group 10 table, making it four victories in a row.
With a maximum 12 points and strong goal difference, their chances of playing the UEFA Championship remain strong. They will need to beat France to top their group and automatically qualify, but even defeat to this seeded side will not entirely rule them out. Four runner up teams with the best points or goal difference score will earn one of eight spots for the 2015 Czech Republic tournament.
Although drawn 0-0 at half time, the plucky Icelanders found the net twice in the second half, with goals from from Arnór Ingvi Traustason (57th minute) and Emil Atlason (85th minute). Strong winds in the first half played havoc for both teams.
Emil Atlason has been on form, scoring 3 of the goals in their drubbing of Belarus 4-1 last month. All of their games have, so far, been away fixtures, increasing their chances of finishing strongly in their group.
France, meanwhile, have two games in hand. While Iceland are one of the few teams to have played 4 of their 8 games, they are leading on points among all 52 European teams trying to qualify for the next round.