Updates and news
The aim of this website is to collect all knowledge and analyse every aspect of Italia'90. The site is a work in progress, with also published material being continuously revised. We will only begin publishing match reports from the 1990 World Cup tournament when all qualifiers have been covered. We are currently (September 2018) focusing on the UEFA group 3 qualifiers, which will remain our priority for a while yet. To receive updates on twitter, follow @1990qual (kaltz) and @1990worldcup (domizio).
NEW: Iceland 2-1 Turkey
There were Turkish fans in Laugardalsvöllur
20 September 1989, Reykjavík: The opening ten minutes are rather unremarkable. For those among the travelling contingent of supporters, and despite the distance, there are a fair few in the main stand with Turkish sympathies, who had been thinking that Turkey would go all out attack in an attempt to tighten the screw on an opponent without a whole lot to play for, they'd have been left disappointed, as Iceland took early control of the clash. They might have been without a target man to play long balls from the back to, but nevertheless their approach was a direct one, often aiming balls into the channels for their strikers to chase. This was also a recipe which had been in use under departing manager Held, when in particular Grétarsson had been flexible and often coming out wide. His territory had usually been along the right, and it seemed so once again. His strike partner Pétursson was a tad more anonymous initially, perhaps treading water after having been out of the national team for so long. Read more . . .
RECENT: Iceland 0-3 East Germany
One of the game's profiles: Matthias Sammer, the East Germany midfielder
6 September 1989, Reykjavik: With both camps well aware of what was at stake, the teams lined up ahead of kick-off in the still rather bright Reykjavik afternoon. The ground appeared to be clearly less congested than what had been the case for the summer visit of Austria, though there was still a reasonable amount of people present. Nearly 9000 spectators had flocked to see Iceland take on East Germany just over two years earlier, but the recent bout of miserable weather had probably made sure that the figure would be lower on this occasion. Nevertheless, the hosts would kick the game into action through forward duo Guðmundur Torfason and Sigurður Grétarsson. Read more...
Previously: Czechoslovakia v Switzerland (1989 qualifier)
Previously: Wales v Netherlands (1989 qualifier)
From the news archives
One of the last qualifiers covered at italia1990.com is Iceland v Soviet Union (31 August 1988) from UEFA Group 3, provided by our writer kaltz. In addition, we give you the front page of the Icelandic newspaper Tíminn on 1 September 1988: Its headline was not so much the result of the game, as the naked person who entered the field. This is allegedly the first time this phenomenon was witnessed on a sporting venue on the island. Insular innocence stolen.
(Thanks to @WC1930blogger for notifying us.)
From the archives
Greece 1-4 Yugoslavia, 5 April 1989
Group 7 Quiz
Who was Belgium's regular libero in the 1990 qualifiers? And who's the player in the middle in the picture to the right? Test your UEFA qualification group 7 knowledge with our new group 7 quiz. Difficulty level: Difficult . . .