'A good fit' - Silkeborg expert delivers exciting verdict on new Preston North End signing

Preston North End have signed someone more than ready for the Championship, in Stefán Teitur Thórdarson.

That is the view of Silkeborg reporter, Mathias Hove, who broke the news of PNE’s interest in the Iceland international last weekend. A deal was swiftly completed, as Thordarson flew over to England, completed his medical and put pen-to-paper on a three-year deal.

He has now joined the Lilywhites’ squad out in Spain, for pre-season, ahead of Friday’s first pre-season friendly against Lincoln City. The 25-year-old Iceland international cost a fee in the region of £700-800k, and Hove expects him to thrive in the English game.

“Yeah, I think it looks like a good fit and a good match for both,” said Hove. “He has got the physical package, which made him so good for Silkeborg and one of the top boys in the Danish league. I definitely see him doing well in England. He’s got a good shot as well - a heavy shot if you like - and scored some great goals from distance. I can see him doing well in the duels with the strong guys who are over there.

“Stefan is a guy with a lot of confidence. Off the pitch, he can be a bit quiet and not so talkative, but he has got a presence when he’s on the field. And, if he’s successful, he’s a dominant player. On the other hand, you can sometimes not see him so much. He scored a lot of different goals last season, including a perfect hat-trick in eight minutes or so. He can do it all, if it’s his day. And he is very fit, so I don’t think that part will be a problem.

“The coach, here in Silkeborg, played for Aston Villa and won the Euros with Denmark in 1992. He said that the Superliga has moved in a direction over the past few years, where it’s quite intense. It was not like that years back, but now it’s an intense league and that can be a problem for the new guys who come here. I think Stefan is fit to go to the Championship. It wasn’t a surprise that he was moving on - he only had six months left on his contract.

“He had been doing very well, in the last season and he also played a huge part in the Danish Cup which Silkeborg won. He was Man of the Match, in front of 35 thousand spectators inside the national stadium. He is a big profile here, if you can call it that. Silkeborg play with a Christmas tree formation - a 4-2-3-1 - and he has played as both a number eight and number ten. Actually, I think his best performance have been as an offensive midfielder.

“He’s a good box-to-box player and very professional. In Denmark, it is considered quite a high amount (of money) because he only had half-a-year left - but I think it’s a good deal for Preston as well. Silkeborg, the company that owns the club, made a new forecast for the result of the financial year. It went up seven million Danish krone, which is about €900,000.”