Gunnarsson is the viking who inspired Iceland’s win over England 5 years ago
When Wayne Rooney steered his penalty past the hands of Hannes Halldorsson – at Euro 2016 – he must have thought England were on their way through.
However, 15 minutes later, he was stood with his hands on his hips as he watched Iceland celebrate their second goal of the game – to swing the tie towards the favour of the Nordic side.
Aron Gunnarsson, then of Cardiff City, had been at the heart of it all.
It's been five years since Iceland humiliated the Three Lions in Nice, and it's safe to say Gunnarsson hasn't forgotten Iceland's historic run.
Gunnarsson, 32, left South Wales – after eight years at Cardiff, including two in the Premier League – in 2019 when he moved onto Al-Arabi in Qatar.
It's quite the change of scenery for a man that was born near the Arctic circle, however, Gunnarsson has never forgotten his roots, and after Euro 2016, he covered himself with Icelandic tattoos.
The former Cardiff stars back now features a huge Icelandic banner with two dragons, a Viking, and a bull on either side of the flag.
His new tattoo's don't just end there either: across his chest, a scene is painted with another Viking, a longboat, and the Norse god Thor wielding his mighty hammer.
Do you think England have improved since Euro 2016? Let us know in the comments section
"After the European Cup Finals in France, two years ago, I just wanted to do something special and uniquely Icelandic," Gunnarsson told the Grapevine before Iceland's maiden World Cup voyage.
"The art is based on the official Iceland crest but it is a modified version where a few of the original elements were replaced with elements that are special to me.
"So in fact this is a deeply personal tattoo that I wear with pride.
"My friend and tattoo artist Gunnar Valdimarsson spent a lot of time on drawing it and once I saw the final version I was absolutely 100 per cent that this was exactly what I wanted on my back.”
Iceland narrowly missed out on qualification for the 2014 World Cup, and the squad didn't want to suffer the same heartbreak for the 2016 Euros.
Gunnarsson, himself, was so committed to the cause he missed for the birth of his first son, as he was in Kazakstan playing a qualifying match.
By the time Iceland had arrived in France they had already captured Europe's attention, firstly, through their size, and, secondly, thanks to their 'Viking clap'.
Of course, their run in Europe had to end, and they bowed out to a rampant French side in the Quarter-Finals.
Don't miss a thing with our football updates!
Want to be on the ball with all of the latest football news?
Well then sign up for the brilliant Daily Star football email newsletter!
From the latest transfer news to the agenda-setting stories, get it all in your email inbox – don't miss a thing.
How do you sign up?
It only takes a matter of seconds.
Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article and hit 'subscribe'.
And that's it, job done. You'll receive an email with all of the top news stories every single morning.
You can find out more information on our email newsletter on this link here.
Iceland weren't done on the international stage; they held Argentina to a draw at the 2018 World Cup.
Gunnarsson had channelled his inner Viking by then; Iceland's captain was easily visible leading the 'Viking clap' with his shaved head and long beard.
Iceland missed out on Euro 2020 when Hungary turned the playoff final on its head last November, bagging twice in injury time to ensure Iceland weren't represented this summer.
Source: Read Full Article