Iceland deflated after late own-goal blow
Saturday, June 18, 2016
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"The dressing room was silent," said Iceland's joint coach Heimir Hallgrímsson after an 88th-minute own goal earned Hungary a "deserved" 1-1 draw in their Group F encounter in Marseille.
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Heimir Hallgrímsson, Iceland joint coach
We were happy with a point against Portugal, but we're disappointed with this result. The dressing room was silent after the game.
I'd like to credit Hungary and their coach. Hungary are a really good team and those who underestimate them will suffer. We put a lot of effort into defending; what we did badly was keeping the ball. That was probably down to tiredness in the end.
The guys worked really hard and we're proud of the performance and work-rate. However, we could have been cleverer in terms of keeping possession and not chasing the ball. We could have been more clinical in managing the time that was left. We should've played more on the ground, especially towards the end.
Kolbeinn Sigthórsson, Iceland forward and man of the match
We were a few minutes way from victory, we failed to finish the game off. We were winning a lot of second balls, but we should've kept calm and played football more. We wanted the three points and were so close.
If you could only have seen how disappointed the boys were in the dressing room. It feels like a loss. We're still unbeaten, so we can be positive about that, and we'll go into the last match [against Austria] with full confidence.
Bernd Storck, Hungary coach
We're very happy with our display and the late goal. It was a big slice of luck but a deserved one because we dominated. We couldn't create many chances, Iceland defended cleverly, although it was better in the second half. We never gave up and always believed in ourselves.
I'm proud of my side, that we had so much possession and played football, always trying to stretch the game. We've developed a lot in recent weeks and deserve these performances.
Iceland have a lot of experience – that's why it was difficult for us. Considering their performances in qualifying against the Czech Republic, Netherlands and Turkey, they're a top team. That's what you can't forget.
We invested everything, particularly in the second half, and were rewarded. It's great.