Algarve Cup
Iceland v Scotland
Monday, 4 March 2019, kick-off 2pm
Estadio Municipal de Bela Vista, Parchal

Scotland will look to put a narrow defeat in their 2019 Algarve Cup opener behind them, as Shelley Kerr’s side come up against Iceland in their second and final group stage encounter.

A late penalty from Christine Sinclair proved decisive in the first competitive match of the year for the SWNT, with Kerr’s squad unlucky to emerge empty-handed from a closely-fought affair.

The focus of the playing group now turns to a second meeting of 2019 with Iceland, after a narrow defeat in La Manga back in January.

Frankie Brown

Despite being one of the few sides in the Algarve not bound for the FIFA Women’s World Cup this summer, Iceland remain a tough test for any side in international football.

The Scandinavian outfit drew their opening fixture in the tournament, claiming a hard-earned 0-0 draw with the Canadians last Wednesday.

Team News

Scotland head coach Shelley Kerr will be able to select from a full complement of players ahead of Monday’s match, after all 23 of the playing group emerged unscathed from the meeting with Canada.

It means healthy competition for places once again, as the likes of Lizzie Arnot and Zoe Ness – both of whom came off the bench in the defeat to Canada – push for a place in the starting eleven.

Experienced players such as Jo Love and Frankie Brown are also amongst the options for Kerr and her coaching staff as they look to come up with a winning formula.

Iceland will be hopeful of another inspired performance from Sandra Sigurdardottir, after the Valur goalkeeper produced a string of impressive saves to secure a share of the spoils against Canada in their opening match of the tournament.

Head coach Jon Hauksson can call on a number of experienced players for the fixture, including his country’s newest centurion Hallbera Gisladottir.

What to expect from Iceland

A team that prides itself on being tough to break down, Kerr’s players will have to be on their game to get the better of their next opponents.

Competitors at every Algarve Cup since 2007, Iceland will be hopeful of improving on last year’s ninth-place finish in Portugal.

Their best result at the tournament came in 2011, where only the USA could prevent Iceland from lifting the trophy.

Scotland supporters will need no warning as to the danger posed by Elin Metta Jensen, the striker’s brace having proved crucial in Iceland’s 2-1 win over Kerr’s side earlier this year.

Pre-match thoughts

Scotland defender Nicola Docherty:  "It was a tough game against Canada.

"With them being ranked fifth in the world, we knew it wasn't going to be an easy game. I thought we matched them pretty well though, especially in the first-half. Defensively, I thought we were spot on in that period.

"It was disappointing to lose the goal in the manner that we did, but we'll pick ourselves up and move on.

"Going into the FIFA Women's World Cup, we're going to be facing teams with a higher ranking than us - it's like a mini-World Cup here. It's good to test ourselves in games like that and it'll benefit us going forward.

"We'll look back and analyse Friday's game to help us going forward. We're now focusing on getting the win against Iceland.

"We obviously lost the last time we played Iceland, but we'll hopefully be able to get at them more than we did last time out and cause them more problems.

"I'm buzzing to be back involved with the squad. It's a really competitive environment, I'm delighted to be back and I'm just taking one game at a time. Everyone is fighting for their place in the squad, which is only going to be good for us going forward.

"The World Cup is in everyone's mind as we go forward - you need to perform well for club and country if you want to be on the plane.

How to follow the match

All of Scotland’s matches at the 2019 Algarve Cup are being streamed live on the BBC Sport website.

Scotland supporters can also keep up to the action as it happens by following the @ScotlandNT Twitter account.