In the space of four days, Breiðablik showed two completely different faces. First came a 1–4 home defeat to Víkingur in the league — a hiding in front of their own supporters. Then the two sides met again, this time in the cup semi-final, and Breiðablik beat that same opponent 3–0 to book a place in the final. The question Keflavík bring to Kópavogsvöllur tonight is a simple one: which Breiðablik turns up?
The market
Both teams to score: not yet available
Breiðablik sit high — fourth before the latest round — but their matches have been goal-fests in both directions. Their last five league games have produced seventeen goals scored and sixteen conceded, with not a single clean sheet among them. They score freely and they concede just as freely. There has been speculation, reported by the newspaper mbl.is, over the position of manager Ólafur Ingi Skúlason after that 1–4 loss; he says he hasn't been called to any meeting. Ívar Örn Árnason is back from suspension and available again.
Keflavík come up as a promoted side, and their form has swung with it. They shipped six at ÍBV, then went out and earned a valuable 3–2 win at KR, where Marin Mudrazija scored twice and Alpha Conteh sealed it with a finish into the far corner. This is a team that can score, but one that tends to leave gaps at the back. Backup goalkeeper Mirsad Basic is out with a broken hand, according to reports, but that barely touches the first eleven — Ásgeir Orri Magnússon is the clear first choice in goal. On paper, these are two sides that can both score and both give plenty away.
LAST 6 (league)
Much of this comes down to whether Keflavík's defence can handle Breiðablik's attacking weight at home. The visitors conceded six in a single game at ÍBV, and now face a side that has put six past KR and four past Stjarnan in short order. If Keflavík can't tighten up, it'll be a long evening.
But the story isn't that simple, because Breiðablik give up plenty themselves. That's where Keflavík's chance lies: Mudrazija and Conteh have shown they can punish on the break, and a side that concedes in every single game is exposed to exactly that. The condition for Keflavík is straightforward — sit deep, hold their shape, and trust the counter rather than trying to trade blows. Do that, and the game can be closer than the table suggests. Try to meet an open Breiðablik with an open game of their own, and the home side's quality going forward is likely to settle it.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
THE PICK
Both teams to score: Yes
No market numbers were available when this was written, so the call here rests on form alone. Breiðablik are the better side, with more depth and an attack that has churned out goals at home. Behind them, too, is that 3–0 win over Víkingur — proof of what they can do when they turn up focused. But the key point here is the goals: both sides have seen both ends of the pitch score in almost every recent game, and there's little to suggest that changes against two leaky defences.
The risk is that Keflavík have also shown another side — 1–0, 1–1 and another 1–1 in three of their last six. If the visitors sit deep and Breiðablik take an early lead, the game can drift into a quiet 2–0 or 1–0, and the both-teams-to-score call falls apart. But on everything these two have shown this summer, that isn't the most likely scenario.
This is Keflavík's first top-flight season in two years, and a promoted side visiting an established European-level club is part of what makes a Monday night at Kópavogsvöllur worth watching. Höskuldur Gunnlaugsson leads a Breiðablik team with a cup final still to come later in the summer — but first, they have to deal with the job in front of them.