Birkir Bjarnason is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for English Championship side Aston Villa and the Iceland national football team.
Birkir started playing football with local clubs in his hometown of Akureyri, Iceland. He joined Viking in the summer of 2005 from Figgjo. He made 100 appearances for Viking in the Tippeligaen, scoring 16 league goals. On 12 January 2012, it was announced that Birkir would sign for Standard Liege on a five-year deal.He played 16 league games in the Belgium Pro League for Liege.In July 2012, he joined the newly promoted Serie A side Pescara on a season-long loan deal. Pescara bought Birkir from Standard Liege in mid-June 2013 on a permanent transfer for a previously agreed fee. On 2 September 2013, it was confirmed that Serie A side Sampdoria had signed Birkir on a co-ownership deal.In total he made 14 Serie A appearances during the 2013–14 season for Sampdoria. On 7 July 2015, he signed a three-year contract with Swiss Super League club FC Basel and helped the team won the Swiss Super League championship at the end of the 2015–16 Super League season. On 25 January 2017, Birkir signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with English Championship side Aston Villa.
Birkir made his debut for the senior Iceland national side in 2010. He has also represented them at Iceland U-21, Under 19 and Under 17 levels. He scored his first goal for Iceland against France on 27 May 2012 in a 3–2 defeat. He also followed this up with goals for Iceland in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification with goals against Albania on 12 October 2012, Slovenia on 7 June 2013 and then against Albania again on 10 September 2013 in a 2–1 victory. Birkir's goals and performances played a crucial role in the qualifiers helping guide Iceland to the World Cup playoff's. He was selected for EURO 2016. |
