Arsenal goalkeeper Alex Runarsson is coming in for criticism at Cardiff City with head coach Erol Bulut coming out in support of his Premier League loanee.
The Iceland international is no stranger to criticism, of course.
During the odd appearance in the Arsenal first team, Alex Runarsson found himself under plenty of pressure after some high-profile blunders. That horror spill against Manchester City in the League Cup quarter-finals back in 2020 comes to mind.
The Emirates-owned glovesman has not made any errors quite so egregious since joining Cardiff City on loan over the summer, but his place in Bulut’s starting XI has certainly become a source of much debate amongst an unimpressed Bluebirds fanbase.
Arsenal loanee yet to convince at Cardiff City
“I heard about it (the criticism),” Bulut responds, standing firm behind the man who rather controversially replaced Jak Alnwick between the sticks. “But I am not of that opinion.
“In the last game at Southampton, with the two goals we conceded, he could not do anything. So if we want to speak about mistakes, we can speak about many things. But not that Alex Runarsson made a mistake and we conceded a goal.
“Against Preston, maybe it was tough with the goal he conceded. (But) that was a difficult situation. We have to see the whole picture, where the mistake starts and ends.”
“I will never say because of one person we won or lost. We are a team, and we win together and we lose together.”
‘Great goalkeeper’
Runarsson, who joined Arsenal in a £1.8 million deal from Dijon, hasn’t really cut the mustard on this side of the Channel but Bulut is expected to persist with his under-fire goalie when Millwall arrive in South Wales on Saturday.
“We have two great goalkeepers,” Bulut adds. “(Runarsson) is 28. For a goalkeeper, that is nothing. He is very good with the ball. Some mistakes will happen, that has happened to many big goalkeepers.
“So you cannot say if you make one mistake you are out. I will not say this to my players to put them under pressure.”
Cardiff have lost four of the six games in which Runarsson has featured so far, including a 5-2 hammering by Blackburn Rovers in the cup.
The post Arsenal man struggling on loan as manager defends 'great' player from fan fury appeared first on HITC.
from HITC https://ift.tt/41giGvc
No comments: