Blackpool's Daniel Gretarsson picks up another international cap as Iceland miss out on World Cup qualification

The defender picked up his fifth cap for his country as Iceland were beaten 3-1 away to North Macedonia.

It means Iceland finish second bottom of their qualifying group for next year’s World Cup after claiming nine points from their 10 games.

Germany topped their group, while North Macedonia finished second and will now head into a play-off.

Gretarsson has yet to make a league appearance for the Seasiders this season, his only cameo coming in the Carabao Cup tie against Sunderland back in August.

In fact, of the five games the defender has played so far this season, four have come for Iceland.

The centre-back also played the full 90 during last week’s goalless draw against Romania in Bucharest.

Gretarsson was an unused substitute during Blackpool’s last game before the international break, the 1-1 draw against QPR.

But the centre-back has otherwise struggled to get into Neil Critchley’s match day squad.

Gretarsson did, however, miss a short spell after suffering mild concussion during Iceland’s 4-0 win against Liechtenstein last month.

The defender, who underwent surgery during the summer to rectify a shoulder problem, has only made 16 appearances since arriving at Bloomfield Road in October 2020.

Kenny Dougall, meanwhile, will be looking to earn his fifth international cap when Australia take on China, which is being played in the United Arab Emirates.

The midfielder was a late substitute last week as Australia were held to a goalless draw at home to Saudi Arabia.

It was the first time Dougall had played in front of his home fans, with his three previous caps all coming on the road.

The Socceroos were forced to play their home games away from Australia earlier on during the pandemic due to Covid restrictions, but these have now been eased.

Graham Arnold’s side sit in second place in their qualifying group behind last week’s opponents Saudi Arabia.

The top two teams from the group will qualify automatically for next year’s tournament in Qatar, while the side that finished third will face a play-off.

Japan, the side that currently sit in third, are just one point adrift of the Aussies.

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