'I've heard a lot' - Preston North End man fired up for Blackburn Rovers derby day after Middlesbrough boost
PNE signed the Iceland international in the summer from Silkeborg IF
Preston North End midfielder Stefan Thordarson is feeling particularly positive after the last two games.
The 26-year-old started the wins over Watford and Middlesbrough, operating in a deeper midfield role in the absence of Ben Whiteman. After the win at Vicarage Road assistant manager Stuart McCall said he had watched all of the Icelandic’s performances for his country.
And so, Thordarson - who has had an up and down time since signing from Silkeborg IF in the summer - dropped into a similar role for North End. The number 22 opened his account for PNE in the Boro clash but in general play, he’s felt fairly comfortable.
“Yeah, I feel it's alright,” Thordarson told the Lancashire Post. “I play as the holding six in the national team. I've done that the last year and I feel, with my height, with my coolness on the ball, when we get that going I feel it's a good position for me. I feel I've dealt with it really good, especially in Watford. And yeah, I felt we were calm a lot of the time (against Middlesbrough) and played some good football.”
Whiteman was set to return from injury last weekend but suffered a ‘nasty’ ankle injury which will rule him out for an extended period. That is a blow to Preston’s midfield department and Thordarson knows the number four will be a miss, but he’s ready to seize the opportunity in store as a result.
“100 per cent,” said Thordarson. “I feel that's something that always happens and it’s really bad for the team - Whitey is very important for the team, on and off, as he's our captain. But I'll just have to go in and show that I'm supposed to be there and that's what I think I've been doing.
“I feel I play a lot of games, a lot of minutes now. There was a bit of a period late last year where I was a bit out of the team, but I felt I've really dug in, trained really hard and knew that my moments would come, and I feel now that I've been getting a lot of games.
“We've been winning a lot of the games I've started, so that's a good sign. We're just looking up. We're just looking at how we can go on and climb the table and go on and hopefully get higher and higher, and I feel we've been showing the performances to be a lot higher in the league.”
“It’ll be brilliant to go there...”
Next up for North End is a Friday night trip to Blackburn Rovers. Plenty of memories have been made over recent years at Ewood Park; no more so than last season when Liam Lindsay headed in a last minute winner in front of a packed away end. PNE surpassed the 5,000 mark last week for ticket sales with the lower tier having been sold out in early January. It’s an evening Thordarson is eagerly anticipating.
“Yes, brilliant,” said Thordarson. “I've heard a lot about the game last season or something. Now it'll be brilliant to go there with all the away fans and hopefully get a win there.”