Our prediction for this Nations League match:
Iceland
Match Time & Date:
14/10/2024
20:45
Prediction: 2-2
Turkey
Laugardalsvollur will be the centre of attention when Iceland and Turkey lock horns in the UEFA Nations League round 4. The Icelanders have been scoring goals for fun of late and they are likely to stick to their attacking style of play in Monday’s clash. Stromsgodset defender Logi Tomasson is pushing for a start after scoring as a substitute in a 2-2 draw with Wales, while Lille midfielder Arnar Haraldsson remains in the recovery room. Preston man Stefan Teitur Thordarson serves a one-game ban.
The Turks, on the other hand, survived Montenegro on Friday evening, with substitute Irfan Can Kahveci scoring the only goal of the match. The Fenerbahce forward is pushing for a start, while Baris Yilmaz is back from suspension. Given Turkey’s attacking potential with Guler and Akturkoglu in the starting XI, we believe that there is a big value in betting on both teams to score.
Highlighted Player (Hakan Calhanoglu):
Hakan Calhanoglu is another one in the long line of Turkish footballers who were born in Germany, so it is hardly surprising he came to prominence thanks to his performances in Bundesliga. The attacking midfielder with great vision and very good goalscoring record started his professional career at Karlsruher, scoring impressive 17 goals in 50 league outings to earn a move to Bundesliga side Hamburg.
The spell at Imtech Arena was merely a stepping stone for bigger things as 11 goals in his debut top flight campaign persuaded Bayer Leverkusen to splash nearly €15 million on his services. That proved a very good investment as Calhanoglu continued the rich vein of form, and it is now a matter of time before he joins one of European powerhouses.
The midfield maestro had a bright start to his career in the Turkey national team, scoring 5 goals in first 16 caps, and chances are he will become a leader for Milli Takim in the foreseeable future.
Highlighted Team (Iceland):
Iceland had little to no success during the first 60 years of entering the FIFA competitions, failing to qualify to a single major tournament in that period, but the team then went on to make tremendous progress at the start of the 21st century.
The Nordic side narrowly missed out on a place at the 2014 World Cup, losing in the play-off to Croatia, but they then enjoyed a thoroughly impressive qualifying campaign to reach the Euro 2016, taking 20 points from 10 matches to leave Turkey and Netherlands trailing in their wake.
As a result, the generation featuring players like Gylfi Sigurdsson, Aron Gunnarsson, Kolbeinn Sigthorsson and Emil Hallfredsson will go down as one of the most successful in the national team history and it could be quite some time before another team repeat their success. Even if he was only used as a bit-part player during the Euro 2016 qualifiers, Eidur Gudjohnsen has got to be mentioned as the first Icelandic footballer to have played for top European sides.
Man City 
Everton
Bournemouth
Crystal Palace 
Chelsea 
Fulham
Newcastle 
Aston Villa 
Nottingham Forest 
Tottenham
Southampton 
West Ham 
