Bett witness to Iceland’s remarkable development
Former Scottish international praises infrastructure and progress of small Nordic island at first Euros
HE 1-1 draw Iceland ground out against Portugal this week that provoked such an undignified reaction from a certain Cristiano Ronaldo was one of the biggest upsets of the Euro 2016 finals so far.
Yet for Jim Bett, the former Scotland player who is now based just outside Reykjavik, the result in the Stade Geoffroy Guichard on Tuesday evening was no great surprise.
He has witnessed at close quarters how extensive investment in both indoor training facilities and the youth football system in the tiny Nordic island have borne fruit in recent years.
He has also seen the team that is jointly managed by Heimir Hallgrimsson and Lars Lägerback flourish at international level thanks in no small part to the sudden emergence of such fine home-grown talent.
In qualifying automatically for the first major tournament in their history, Iceland defeated the Czech Republic and Turkey at home and, incredibly, the Netherlands both home and away.
Ronaldo may not be a fan. The smarting Real Madrid superstar accused them of having a “small mentality” and predicted they would “not do anything in the competition” in a pathetic and petulant outburst following the Group F game in Saint Etienne.
However, as Iceland prepare to take on Hungary – themselves surprise winners over an Austria side which many pre-tournament tipsters fancied to do well – in the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille this evening, Bett anticipates that even better may be to come.
“I thought what Ronaldo said was nonsense,” he said. “Iceland do play football, they just approached the game tactically. It is pretty sad that a guy like that can’t congratulate a team playing in their first match in the European Championship finals. I think they will be more attacking against Hungary.
“A lot of credit has to go to Lars Lägerbeck, their Swedish coach. He has blended everybody together perfectly. Lars took over at a very good time when a lot of good young boys were coming through from the under21 side. He has integrated them with the older professionals brilliantly.
“The older players have gained a lot of experience from playing abroad. The under-21s have performed very well and have qualified for the European Championship finals themselves. They just needed somebody to gel everyone together.”
But how can a tiny island nation with a population of under 350,000 – more people live in Fife – produce so many good young players and perform so well against such formidable rivals when Scotland are unable to do either?
Bett, one of the most technically gifted Scottish footballers of his generation, believes there is much that those who run the game in his homeland can learn from how Iceland have transformed their fortunes.
“It is hard to put your finger on what it is that has worked,” he said. “But I do think that Icelanders, like Scandinavians in general, are always willing to listen to new ideas and try new ways of doing things.
“The kids here are incredibly enthusiastic and there are a lot of indoor halls for them to train and play in during the winter. Every day after school, you will find all of the halls full of youngsters. They start coaching kids at around four or five. They are all associated with local clubs.
“The sports complexes are partly funded by the government and partly funded by private investment. For a small country, there is certainly fantastic infrastructure. There are very good facilities. There are huge indoor areas for a large number of kids to train in.”
Hallgrimsson and Lägerback are able to select a starting line-up from professionals who ply their trade at Lokeren in Belgium, Charlton in England, Swansea City and Cardiff City in Wales, Cesena and Udinese in Italy, Nantes in France, Augsburg and Kaiserslautern in Germany and Basel in Switzerland.
The excitement surrounding Iceland’s presence in France has been great and Bett, whose wife hails from the island, has enjoyed their remarkable involvement every bit as much as his friends and neighbours.
“It’s been absolutely incredible,” he said. “Everybody is very upbeat about it. Iceland have taken a great support over to France as well. When you consider the size of the country it is amazing they have even qualified never mind done so well.
“Nobody in Iceland has experienced anything like this in football before, but they have in handball. They reached the Olympic final in Beijing in 2008 and won silver after losing to France. But this is a new experience.
“Everyone is looking forward to Iceland v Hungary.”