- Team styles: Stjarnan's fluid attack-first system with a high press is very different to IA's pragmatic, compact style.
- Recent form: Stjarnan have won two, drawn two and lost one of their last five in all competitions.
A tale of two styles
Home record
IA Akranes have won just one, drawn two and lost three of their seven home games in Besta deild karla 2026, averaging 1.00 goals scored per game and 1.67 goals conceded per game. Their most recent matches have been especially tough, losing to Breidablik, KA Akureyri and Keflavik, to form a streak of five consecutive defeats.
Manager and key threat
Larus Sigurdsson has been in charge since 23 June 2025 and his side are very much a pragmatic, compact team. Markus Ellertsson has been their biggest threat, notching six goals in four games in Besta deild karla 2026.
Stjarnan are better than they’ve shown recently
Odds and recent results
Stjarnan are the slight favourites at 2.44, against IA's 2.35 and the draw at 4.1. The midweek result for IA wasn't entirely convincing, however, when they drew 2-2 away to Víkingur Gota in UEFA Conference League Qualification, prior to being thumped 5-0 away by KR Reykjavik in Besta deild karla 2026.
Form and away record
Stjarnan's form is patchy, rather than disastrous, with two wins, two draws and one loss from their last five in all competitions. They have won two, drawn two and lost three from seven away, averaging 1.71 goals per game scored and 2.29 conceded away from home in Besta deild karla 2026.
IA can cause an upset
Joekull Elisabetarson's Stjarnan are more attack-minded than Larus Sigurdsson's IA, and that's never been more true since the former took charge on 12 May 2023. His fluid 3-2-4-1 and 4-2-3-1 systems are all about tempo, vertical penetration and pressing to force mistakes, high up the pitch.
That will surely be the case in this game, which should be a case of compact defence vs chaotic high-press.
- IA's recent home form, which includes two defeats from their last two, leaves a lot to be desired, but they did cause an upset on home turf two months ago when defeating Stjarnan and that should make this fixture anything but a foregone conclusion.
- Stjarnan have the more reliable and more prolific goal scorer in Emil Atlason, who has seven in three in Besta deild karla 2026, and has also netted four of his team's last ten goals in their last five.
Both teams to score and over 2.5 is the play
Over 2.5 goals at 1.23 and Both Teams to Score – Yes at 1.25 is the selection for this mid-table battle at Stjoernuvoellur, where both have a good chance of scoring and the market is slightly on the side of goals.
