Aron Johannsson didn’t see Iceland make its World Cup debut last week against Lionel Messi and mighty Argentina, but it wasn’t because the former Iceland youth national teamer couldn’t bring himself to watch.

That would’ve been understandable.

After all, ever since tiny Iceland shocked the world by qualifying for the 2016 European Championship and then for Russia 2018, the 27-year-old Johannsson has been asked ad nauseam if he regrets his decision to play for the United States, where he was born to Icelandic parents studying at the University of South Alabama, instead of the country of his roots, where he moved as a toddler and developed into a top prospect before pursuing his career elsewhere in Europe.

“Everyone’s always saying that I would’ve made a different choice if I knew that Iceland would’ve made the World Cup, blah, blah, blah,” Johannsson told Yahoo Sports this week.

To be fair, nobody did.

With a population of about 334,000 – less than the U.S. city of Aurora, Colorado – Iceland is easily the smallest nation to reach the sport’s grandest stage. Back in 2012, when then USMNT coach Jurgen Klinsmann asked Johannsson if he’d consider representing the U.S., the possibility of Iceland participating in a World Cup seemed as likely as the Americans missing one.

Johannsson had already been summoned by Iceland’s senior squad by then. Only an injury prevented him from appearing in a pair of World Cup qualifiers that October. Had he stepped on the field, he would’ve become ineligible for the U.S. under FIFA rules.

Klinsmann was persistent, though. The following summer, Johannsson informed FIFA of his decision to switch allegiances to his birth nation, ending his career with Iceland before it really began.

It seemed that Johannsson had made a wise choice when the U.S. cruised to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, while Iceland narrowly missed out. The decision looked even smarter when Johannsson was pressed into emergency duty in the Americans’ tournament-opening 2-1 win over Ghana after fellow striker Jozy Altidore went down with a torn hamstring, even if a nagging foot ailment prevented Johannsson from playing in final three U.S. matches.

But what if he had the benefit of hindsight?

“You want to know if I would’ve made the same decision if I knew everything I know today?” Johannsson laughed.



“Yes, I would make the same decision – and I say the same thing to my friends and family – because playing for the U.S. has been unbelievable,” he said. “I’ve had so many great experiences, and hopefully I will have many more.”

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Playing in a World Cup obviously tops his list. Johannsson calls that cameo against Ghana “the best day of my life in soccer.” He remains disappointed that the U.S. failed to make this summer’s competition, but he also knows that he probably wouldn’t have been in Russia even if he’d chosen Iceland instead.

Johannsson has been plagued by an absurdly long list of injuries over the last three years. He’s been limited to just 27 appearances since 2015 for German Bundesliga club Werder Bremen. On the rare occasions he’s been healthy, he’s performed well; he scored in the German Cup in February after returning from an Achilles injury, then notched an important equalizer in the league against Borussia Monchengladbach before getting hurt yet again.

“It’s not like I’m getting muscle injuries,” Johannsson said. “It’s been by knee, my ankle, my hip. It’s just been very unfortunate. But my luck has to change. I know my qualities and I know what I can bring. I just need to stay healthy.”

The run of misfortune extended all the way though Iceland’s World Cup opener. Johannsson was flying home from Germany following a check-up with Bremen’s medical staff when Iceland’s historic first match kicked off.

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