99: Eidur Gudjohnsen, Chelsea, Merlin’s F.A. Premier League 2001 Official Sticker Collection

Happy New Year! Let’s be honest 2021 can’t be worse than the absolute shitshow that has gone before but if we have learnt anything from it it’s that tempting fate isn’t a particularly bright idea. So rather than dwelling on the whole host of negatives that 2020 dredged up I’m going to take an opportunity to focus on some of the nicer things of a year that gave very little and took a lot. My wife and I became parents to a lovely baby boy back in October and it’s been an absolute joy getting to know him. I also started this blog with three of my best mates and it’s been a right laugh looking back at some of our footballing heroes. Both of these things have made it clear that there are some decent people out there – including the lads behind Chelsea’s ‘At The Bridge’ podcast. This one’s for you.

As well as a love of the beautiful game, and the associated turbulent relationship with Crystal Palace Football Club, my Dad has passed on his obsession with music and books to me. Such an obsession comes with a lot of full shelves and my old man helpfully reminds me when staring at the rows and rows of vinyl that “one day son, this will all be yours”. Chuck in a load of matchday programmes and sticker albums and my poor lad will be in the same boat in years to come. Dad also got me playing football and I fully intend to get the young’un kicking a ball about as soon as possible. Who knows, we might end up with three generations of fullbacks with increasingly continental pretensions. However, we might have to go some before we compare to the Gudjohnsen clan.

Arnór Gudjohnsen racked up over 100 goals in 500 appearances across some of Europe’s big clubs including Anderlecht and Bordeaux and was even charitable enough to have his penalty saved in the 1984 UEFA Cup Final to gift Tottenham Hotspur some continental silverware. He also scored 14 goals in his 73 caps for Iceland and it was during the latter stages of his international career where he metaphorically passed the baton on to his eldest son, Eidur, when he was substituted for his teenage progeny during a 3-0 win against Estonia in April 1996. If whoever was on PA duty in Tallinn that day failed to bang on some Cat Stevens as the change was made they deserve to be sacked. At the age of 25 Arnór had stated that his biggest wish was to play international football alongside his son but sadly Eidur’s broken ankle and subsequent battle with tendonitis meant that by the time the younger Gudjohnsen had fully recovered his father had retired from international football.

Young Eidur’s ankle injury not only put an end to his father’s international ambition but also ended a potentially exciting strike partnership with the original Ronaldo at PSV Eindhoven. A loan spell at hometown club KR Reykjavik helped nurse him back to match fitness and the prodigious talent was soon on the way to England to join recently relegated Bolton Wanderers. He found the net 21 times across 55 appearances for the Trotters and helped them reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup, League Cup and Division One play-offs in the 1999/2000 season. Goals from Marcus Stewart and a hat-trick from Jim Magilton denied them a return to the Premier League but Gudjohnsen would soon get a taste of the top flight as Chelsea shelled out £4.5m to bring him to Stamford Bridge.

Despite mainly being used as a substitute in his first season in West London he managed to score 13 goals before forging a formidable strike partnership with Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in the 2001/02 campaign which saw the pair bag 52 goals in all competitions. He consistently hit double figures for the Blues and despite the arrival of Roman Abramovich’s billions remained an integral part of Jose Mourinho’s title winning sides in 2004/05 and 2005/06. By the time that Barcelona swooped Gudjohnsen had scored 78 times in over 250 appearances, won a host of trophies and overcome a potentially damaging gambling problem which had seen him lose over £400,000 across five turbulent months in 2003. An eventful stay to say the least.

Under Mourinho Gudjohnsen had played in an increasingly withdrawn role behind the strikers and took up a similar mantle at the Nou Camp. The plethora of attacking talent meant that first team opportunities were relatively limited in Spain but, despite the presence of the likes of Samuel Etoo, Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi, Eidur was able to make 114 appearances for Barca contributing 19 goals in the process. In the 2008/09 season, his last with the club, he helped rookie manager Pep Guardiola’s side to an impressive treble of La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the Champions League. Clearly more attacker than ‘Tiki Taka’ he was moved on to AS Monaco sparking a nomadic period which saw the Icelander take in spells with Tottenham Hotspur, Stoke City, Fulham and AEK Athens. This was followed by two seasons in Bruges split between Cercle Brugge and Club Brugge before a return to Bolton Wanderers for the 2014/15 season. Clearly keen to tick every mid-2010s footballing box he spent a season in China with Shijiazhuang Ever Bright (excellent team name) before one last hurrah with Molde in Norway in 2016.

Twenty years on from his international debut Eidur was named in the squad for Iceland’s first appearance at a major international tournament in the Euro 2016 finals. During the competition they won the hearts of neutrals and partisans alike with their fans’ infectious ‘thunderclap’ chant and their players’ ability to make Joe Hart look silly and the unfancied side reached the quarter-finals. Their eventual 5-2 defeat at the hand of host nation France saw Eidur emerge from the bench to take the captain’s armband and win his 88th and final cap. His 26 goals for the national side remain an Icelandic record.

If the story ended there it’s fair to say that Arnór Gudjohnsen would be incredibly proud of his son’s achievements. However, ahead of Iceland’s UEFA Nations League clash with England in November 2020 a third generation of the Gudjohnsen family was included in the squad when Eidur’s eldest son, Sveinn Aron, was called up. Although he didn’t make it on to the pitch it looks as though it’s only a matter of time until he earns his first cap and, if all else fails, younger brothers Andri and Daniel Tristan are both on the books at Spanish giants Real Madrid. As we head into 2021, where we might actually be allowed within six feet of our families again, wouldn’t it be nice if the dreams of an Icelandic legend came true?