Arnar Viðarsson
Arnar Viðarsson (born 15 March 1978) is a retired Icelandic footballer, his playing position was midfielder. He last played for Belgian Pro League side Cercle Brugge, where he was also employed as head coach. Currently he is the head coach of Iceland.
Viðarsson at De Graafschap. | |||
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Arnar Þór Viðarsson | ||
Date of birth | 15 March 1978 | ||
Place of birth | Reykjavík, Iceland | ||
Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in) | ||
Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | Iceland (head coach) | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1996–1997 | FH | 35 | (3) |
1997–2006 | Lokeren | 235 | (6) |
1997 | → Lillestrøm (loan) | 6 | (0) |
1998 | → FH (loan) | 4 | (0) |
1998 | → Genk (trial) | 0 | (0) |
2006–2008 | Twente | 11 | (0) |
2007–2008 | → De Graafschap (loan) | 32 | (1) |
2008–2014 | Cercle Brugge | 157 | (0) |
Total | 480 | (10) | |
National team‡ | |||
1993 | Iceland U16 | 8 | (0) |
1993–1994 | Iceland U17 | 7 | (0) |
1995–1996 | Iceland U19 | 11 | (0) |
1996–1999 | Iceland U21 | 17 | (0) |
1998–2007 | Iceland | 52 | (2) |
Teams managed | |||
2014 | Cercle Brugge (assistant) | ||
2014–2015 | Cercle Brugge | ||
2015–2018 | Lokeren (assistant and U21) | ||
2018 | Lokeren (caretaker) | ||
2018–2019 | Lokeren (assistant and U21) | ||
2019–2020 | Iceland U-21 | ||
2020– | Iceland | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 2 October 2012 ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 14 June 2010 |
Club career
He started his career in FH, and moved to Belgium to play for Sporting Lokeren early in his career. He returned to FH for a short period, but apart from a loan spell at Lillestrøm SK and a trial at Genk, he has played for Lokeren from October 1998 until 2006. Since then, Lokeren has signed many Icelandic players, for instance midfielder Rúnar Kristinsson who holds the Icelandic record for most international caps.
In 2006, he transferred to FC Twente, where he signed a contract until 2009. For the 2007-08 he was loaned out to newly promoted De Graafschap, before eventually returning to Belgium, playing for Cercle Brugge, where he ended his career as a player in the summer of 2014, becoming assistant under head coach Lorenzo Staelens. Following the sacking of Staelens on October of that same year, Arnar was appointed head coach.
International career
Arnar was capped 52 times for Iceland, scoring 2 goals,[1] as well as 41 times at youth level. He made his debut for the seniors in a June 1998 friendly match against South Africa.
Personal life
- Arnar is the brother of fellow Icelandic midfielders Bjarni and Davíð, and the son of Icelandic footballer Viðar Halldórsson.[2]
External links
- Profile at VI.nl
- Arnar Viðarsson at National-Football-Teams.com
- Icelandic FA Profile
References
- Iceland - Record International Players - RSSSF
- "Bjarni Þór Viðarsson samdi við Everton" [Bjarni Thor Vidarsson signed for Everton]. Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 20 May 2004.