Þór Akureyri sit bottom of the Besta deild. Yet a fortnight ago they beat the league leaders 2–1 at Þórsvöllur, their home ground in the northern city of Akureyri. That's the story that makes this game more interesting than the table suggests: the bottom side has shown it can hurt anyone at home, and now Breiðablik come north after a long trip — with a defence that just shipped four goals in a single match.
The market
No market read is available.
Þór have won one of their last six, and that win came against the side top of the table. Otherwise the picture is grim: a 6–1 defeat at Fram, 4–1 to ÍBV, 4–2 to Valur. Across those six games they have scored ten and conceded nineteen, with no clean sheet among them. Over the season the goals-against column reads 42 in fifteen — comfortably the worst defence in the league. That's a real concern for a promoted side, but at home they score, and it's what keeps them alive in the relegation fight.
Breiðablik, from Kópavogur in greater Reykjavík, come from a very different place: fourth, on 26 points, with only three defeats in fifteen. The goal difference is positive at 34–26 and the attack has been reliable. But by the available account, their last outing was a 4–4 draw with Stjarnan — a back line that can be opened when it's tested. The trip from Kópavogur north to Akureyri is a genuine factor; it's a long day for the visitors. Reported managers: Ólafur Ingi Skúlason for Breiðablik, Sigurður Heiðar Höskuldsson for Þór.
LAST 6 MATCHES
The game turns on whether Þór's home threat can trouble a defence that has just conceded four. Þór have scored in all six of their last matches — both sides found the net in every one of them — and Ingimar Arnar Kristjánsson has led the way in a thin group of scorers. The trouble is that Þór pay for that adventure at the other end; they're opened up as easily as they open others.
Breiðablik should have the edge in quality, with Höskuldur Gunnlaugsson as their attacking reference point. The question is whether they arrive with the focus the job needs after a long journey north, against a side with nothing to lose. If Breiðablik keep the ball and wear the hosts down, their quality should tell in the end. But hand Þór the chances Stjarnan got, and they get exactly the kind of game they play best — open and full of goals. Whoever controls the tempo settles this.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The sides haven't met in the top flight for years — Þór are newly promoted after a long absence — and reliable head-to-head results aren't available.
THE PICK
The pick is a Breiðablik win in a game with goals. They're the far stronger side on paper — fourth against the bottom club — and over ninety minutes the quality should tell. But Þór's defence is the leakiest in the league and they score at home, so goals at both ends look likely. Þór have scored in each of their last six and conceded in every one of them too.
The risk is Þór's home ground. They beat the leaders at Þórsvöllur a fortnight ago, and if they do it again — take an early lead and let the long trip catch up with the visitors — the away win is in trouble. The goals call still looks the strongest of the three; what could undo it is Breiðablik going ahead early and then managing a quiet game rather than playing it open.
Þór are back in the top flight after a long absence, and Akureyri has a men's side in the Besta deild again. The newcomers walk into this bottom of the table but with a win over the league leaders in their pocket — and up north, on the artificial turf in the evening chill, Þórsvöllur is no easy stop for a side that has travelled all the way from Kópavogur.