Einarsson: Gylfi

2004- 2007 (Player Details)

Midfield

Born: Reykjavik, Iceland: 27-10-1978

Debut v Crewe Alexandra (h) (substitute): 01-01-2005

6’1” 12st 8lb (2005)

Einarsson began as a trainee with KR Reykjavik and played for Fylkir fifty-four times and scored eighteen goals before moving to Norwegian club Lillestrom FK in 2000. In the 2004 season he scored thirteen goals in twenty-six matches for them. He had sixteen goals to his credit and had played eighty-three games when he left to join Leeds United. He signed after impressing during a short trial period, and on a Bosman free transfer after falling out of contract with the Norwegian side, but FIFA regulations meant he could not actually sign for the club until the transfer window reopened on January 1st 2005. He was brought to the attention of Leeds Manager Kevin Blackwell by a Scandanavian Leeds fan. He had a reputation as a goalscoring midfielder and was particularly good in the air. Blackwell was the man who the directors chose to pilot Leeds through the traumas of their first CCCL season in 2004-05. No fewer than thirty-seven were used in that season, of which twenty-six made their debut. Einarsson chose Leeds ahead of Cardiff City, because of the club's reputation in Scandinavia, which had built up over the years but reached its zenith in the Graham/O'Leary era, when many players from the region had played for Leeds. He made his debut as a sixty-second minute substitute for Danny Pugh on New Years Day 2005 in a 0-2 defeat at Crewe Alexandra. He found the going tough in his new environment but made his run-on debut in a 1-1 draw against Brighton & Hove Albion at Elland Road on 29th January 2005. He made an impact on that game, when, two minutes before the interval it was he who flicked on David Healy's corner for Clarke Carlisle to give Leeds the lead with the first goal of the game. A regular scorer for Lillestrom, he scored the headed winner, from an Aaron Lennon cross, against Burnley at Turf Moor on 5th February 2005, in only his third game for Leeds and only his second full game. Frank Sinclair of Burnley was also sent off for kicking out at him following a midfield clash in the same game. However, it was to be his only goal for the club as Einarsson was never more than a bit player for Leeds, due mainly to the injury problems he suffered in his time with the club. He only made eight appearances, of which two were from the bench, as injuries halted his progress after a promising start to his Leeds career. 2005-06 saw Leeds reach the play-off final but his injury woes continued and he was restricted to just ten appearances, of which just three times did he play a complete game. He was substituted twice and came on as a substitute seven times, mostly for a few minutes. His final start for Leeds was in a 0-2 home defeat by Ipswich Town on 24th September 2005. Richard Cresswell missed a penalty with the score at 0-1 and Einarsson was replaced by Frazer Richardson after fifty-nine minutes. The injuries restricted him to three further subsitute appearances that season, the last being as a seventy-seventh minute substitute in a televised Friday night draw at home to Sheffield United on 21st October 2005. On 6th September 2006, Gylfi had an hip operation to remove floating bone and was out of contention for the squad for eight weeks. In January 2007, Einarsson was subject to interest from Norwegian team, Strømsgodset. He made his final Leeds appearance in the disastrous 2006-07 season, when he came on as an eighty-fifth minute replacement for Armando Sa in 2-1 win at Hull City on 30th January 2007. After his operation Einarsson was advised by the specialist to retire from the game. Einarsson left Leeds United on the final day of the summer transfer window in the 2007-08 campaign, when his contract was terminated. He moved to Norway where he played for Brann, alongside Eirik Bakke. He signed a two year contact with the reigning Norwegian champions, SK Brann, on 25th January 2008, after a short trial. He made his debut on 30th March 2008 and scored four times in forty-seven appearances in all games, of which twenty-nine were as a substitute. He left SK Brann in December 2010, when his contract expired, and returned to his first team Fylkir. He scored on debut against UMF Grindavik on 2nd May 2011 and had started fourteen games for them by September 2011. He has represented Iceland twenty-four times and has scored once, in a famous 2-0 victory over Italy in August 2004. Einarsson is now unable to run or play football and works for Tax Free Worldwide, an international financial services company in his native Iceland.