Century not the focus as Rosický eyes Iceland

"When I am asked about my starting lineup, I always say you can write down Tomáš Rosický for certain," Czech Republic coach Pavel Vrba revealed ahead of the Arsenal FC midfielder's potential 100th cap against Iceland on Friday.

"He remains a top-class midfielder regardless of his age. Every time I see his technical ability in training, I realise how important he is for us," continued the 51-year-old, speaking in advance of the Group A leaders' showdown with their closest challengers.

While Rosický is set to register his century in Reykjavik, his international career began in Dublin 15 years ago during a 3-2 friendly defeat by the Republic of Ireland. "The first game always comes to mind more than the others. It was in Ireland and I came off the bench, substituting Pavel Nedvěd for the last eight or so minutes," said the Czech Republic captain, who is more concerned about the result in Iceland than personal landmarks.

"That [debut] seems so long ago that I do not even remember if I was nervous. I might have the shirt somewhere at home, though. I thought I might get nostalgic with the 100th game approaching, but I do not feel it. The success of the team seems the most important thing. We need to play good football and get the right result."

Since that maiden outing in February 2000, Rosický has become the third-most-capped Czech player in history with only Karel Poborský (118) and Petr Čech (113) having featured more often. The 34-year-old has appeared at three UEFA EUROs plus a FIFA World Cup, seeing off eight coaches during a period which has seen major changes.

"Everything is different from when I got my first cap. There have been many different coaches, many great players have come through the team. Of course different football is played nowadays; it is very hard to make any comparisons as everything has changed."

The Prague-born playmaker still feels his national-team career has time to run, and wants to end on a high with a cameo at UEFA EURO 2016 in France. "Before the start of qualifying we were talking about whether I would continue or not, so we shall see what the future brings," he said. "The EURO is the focus, from the perspective not just of my international career but also my career as a whole. The national team plays a crucial part for me. I cannot step off the gas – I am captain and must lead in the right way."