Iceland pay tribute to Elíasson

Iceland players paid tribute to former national team player and coach Ásgeir Elíasson before, and after, Wednesday night's UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifying victory against Northern Ireland.

Honours
Elíasson, who died at the age of 57 on Sunday, won 32 caps for his country and coached Iceland from 1991 to 1995, a spell which yielded 12 victories in 35 games. He claimed the championship three times as a player, and the cup on three occasions during a coaching career which incorporated numerous clubs.

Silence
Players wore black armbands last night and observed a minute's silence before kick-off as music was played in Elíasson's honour. After the 2-1 triumph, each player put one hand on the armband while pointing to the sky with the other, to dedicate the three Group F points to Elíasson.

Gudjohnsen praise
FC Barcelona forward Eidur Gudjohnsen said: "We all agreed to dedicate the victory to Ásgeir and wanted to show his family our sympathy. Some of us in the team played under him and the loss is not only to football – he was a great person who will be missed very much."