Credit: Ievgenii Karanov, Chronicle.lu

On Tuesday 29 September 2026, Luxembourg’s national football team suffered a home defeat against Iceland in their second 2026/27 UEFA Nations League Group C4 match at the Stade de Luxembourg in front of 8,879 spectators.

Compared with the starting line-up in 2-1 victory over Bulgaria, Luxembourg made one change, with Mathias Olesen replacing Danel Sinani.

Iceland nearly opened the scoring in the fifth minute following an attack down the left. Andri Gudjohnsen reached the ball near the byline inside Anthony Moris’ penalty area and cut it back towards Mikael Ellertsson, but the Iceland midfielder failed to make proper contact from around eleven metres.

Aiman Dardari responded two minutes later with a run into the Iceland penalty area, but a defender blocked his effort from around ten metres. Mathias Olesen then tried his luck from outside the box in the ninth minute, with his shot also blocked by the visitors’ defence.

The visitors broke the deadlock in the thirteenth minute following a quick counter-attack. Iceland captain Orri Oskarsson broke down the right from near the halfway line before entering the penalty area and finding the unmarked Andri Gudjohnsen, who lifted a first-time finish over Anthony Moris to make it 0-1.

The Red Lions captain Laurent Jans was injured while attempting to intercept the pass in the same move and was replaced by Marvin Martins. Leandro Barreiro took over the captain’s armband.

Arnar Gunnlaugsson’s team continued to put pressure on the hosts, with Luxembourg’s defenders making several interventions over the following ten minutes to prevent further chances. Hakon Haraldsson then fired over the crossbar from around eighteen metres in the 31st minute.

At that stage, Iceland had 55% possession and had registered four attempts compared with Luxembourg’s two, while also leading 6-2 in attacks.

The visitors doubled their advantage in the 39th minute. Gylfi Sigurdsson released Orri Oskarsson with a first-time pass from near the halfway line, and the Iceland captain beat Anthony Moris to make it 0-2.

The Grand Duchy's team registered their first shot on target in the 42nd minute, when Vincent Thill’s effort from the left side of the six-yard box went straight into the hands of Hakon Valdimarsson. 

Arnar Gunnlaugsson’s team threatened again five minutes after the restart when Andri Gudjohnsen and Isak Johannesson combined inside the Luxembourg penalty area, but Dirk Carlson intervened in the six-yard box to block the resulting effort.Jeff Strasser's team responded two minutes later through Vincent Thill, who received a high ball with his back to goal just outside the Iceland six-yard box but was unable to bring it under control, allowing Hakon Valdimarsson to collect.

Mikael Ellertsson created another opportunity for Iceland in the 57th minute, breaking down the right into the Luxembourg penalty area before finding Hakon Haraldsson, who failed to make clean contact and sent the ball wide of the far post.

Luxembourg head coach Jeff Strasser made a double substitution in the 62nd minute, with Enzo Duarte and Jason Videira replacing Mathias Olesen and Vincent Thill.

The hosts subsequently increased the pressure on the Iceland goal but were unable to turn their possession into attempts on target. Arnar Gunnlaugsson’s team instead added a third goal in the 73rd minute when Viktor Palsson headed Gylfi Sigurdsson’s corner past Anthony Moris.

Jeff Strasser later made another double substitution, introducing Omar Natami and Timothe Rupil in place of Tomas Moreira Cruz and Hamza Kadamani.

By the 80th minute, Luxembourg had increased their share of possession to 74%, but Iceland had registered nine attempts compared with four for the hosts and led 10-2 in attacks.

Luxembourg enjoyed a significant share of possession in the closing stages but struggled to create shooting opportunities, while crosses into the Iceland penalty area were dealt with by Hakon Valdimarsson and the visiting defence.

The final whistle confirmed a 0-3 defeat for Luxembourg in their first home match of the 2026/27 UEFA Nations League campaign. In the other Group C4 match, Estonia and Bulgaria played out a 0-0 draw. The Red Lions will now travel to Tallinn, where they will face Estonia on Saturday 3 October 2026.

Starting lineups:

Luxembourg: Anthony Moris (GK); Laurent Jans (C); Florian Bohnert; Dirk Carlson; Enes Mahmutovic; Tomas Moreira Cruz; Leandro Barreiro; Aiman Dardari; Vincent Thill; Hamza Kadamani; Mathias Olesen.

Iceland: Hakon Valdimarsson (GK); Logi Tomasson; Daniel Gretarsson; Stefan Thordarson; Viktor Palsson; Hakon Haraldsson; Isak Johannesson; Gylfi Sigurdsson; Mikael Ellertsson; Orri Oskarsson (C); Andri Gudjohnsen.