Birkir Bjarnason

Birkir Bjarnason (born on 27 May 1988 in Akureyri, Iceland) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder. He currently plays for the Swiss club of FC Basel and the Iceland national team.[3] In his homeland he is nicknamed Thor.[4]

Birkir Bjarnason
Birkir Bjarnason 2018.jpg
Birkir playing for Iceland at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full nameBirkir Bjarnason[1]
Date of birth (1988-05-27) 27 May 1988 (age 36)[2]
Place of birthAkureyri, Iceland
Height1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Playing positionCentral midfielder
Club information
Current team
Brescia
Number7
Youth career
KA Akureyri
Austrått
Figgjo
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2006–2011Viking103(16)
2008Bodø/Glimt (loan)22(5)
2012–2013Standard Liège16(0)
2012–2013Pescara (loan)24(2)
2013Pescara1(0)
2013–2014Sampdoria14(0)
2014–2015Pescara35(10)
2015–2017FC Basel42(14)
2017–2019Aston Villa48(5)
2019Al-Arabi5(1)
2020–2021Brescia39(6)
2021–2023Adana Demirspor41(5)
2023Viking11(2)
2023–Brescia1(1)
National team
2004Iceland U177(2)
2005–2007Iceland U1914(3)
2006–2011Iceland U2125(4)
2010–Iceland113(15)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 03:21, 12 June 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 16 November 2022

He has also played for Viking FK, FK Bodø/Glimt, Standard Liège, Delfino Pescara 1936 and Sampdoria. He won the Swiss Super League with Basel in 2016.[5]

He was included in Iceland's squad for the UEFA Euro 2016. On 14 June 2016, he scored Iceland's first goal at a major tournament.[6] It was against Portugal, and the game ended in a draw.[7]

Birkir with Iceland in 2014

Statistics

International goals

As of 3 July 2016[8]
# Date Location Opponent Score Result Competition
1
27 May 2012 Valenciennes, France   France
1–0
2–3
Friendly
2
12 October 2012 Tirana, Albania   Albania
1–0
2–1
2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3
7 June 2013 Reykjavík, Iceland   Slovenia
1–1
2–4
4
10 September 2013 Reykjavík, Iceland   Albania
1–1
2–1
5
28 March 2015 Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan   Kazakhstan
2–0
3–0
UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying
6
3–0
7
14 June 2016 Saint-Étienne, France   Portugal
1–1
1–1
UEFA Euro 2016
8
3 July 2016 Saint-Denis, France   France
2–5
2–5

References

  1. "Club list of registered players: As at 19th May 2018: Aston Villa" (PDF). English Football League. p. 2. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia: List of players: Iceland" (PDF). FIFA. 16 June 2018. p. 13. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 16 June 2018. {{cite web}}: More than one of |archivedate= and |archive-date= specified (help); More than one of |archiveurl= and |archive-url= specified (help)
  3. Birkir Bjarnason. KSI. http://www.ksi.is/mot/motalisti/felagsmadur/?LeikmadurNr=164919&pListi=4. Retrieved 14 January 2012. 
  4. Five things to know about Birkir Bjarnason - the Thor of football. Yorkshire Evening Post. http://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/leeds-united/latest-whites-news/leeds-united-five-things-to-know-about-birkir-bjarnason-the-thor-of-football-1-7295852. Retrieved 5 June 2015. 
  5. "Saison-Archiv". Swiss Football League. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016. Retrieved 1 July 2016. {{cite web}}: More than one of |archivedate= and |archive-date= specified (help); More than one of |archiveurl= and |archive-url= specified (help)
  6. "More than 8 percent of Iceland's population at Euro 2016". USA Today. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  7. "Portugal 1-1 Iceland: Cristiano Ronaldo and Co held to shock draw by minnows". Mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2016.
  8. "KSI profile". KSI. Retrieved 14 June 2016.

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