Aron Gunnarsson has pinpointed Gylfi Sigurdsson as Everton’s biggest threat to Cardiff City tonight – and says he cannot understand some of the criticism given to his Iceland teammate.
The two countrymen are set to face each other at the Cardiff City Stadium where the Bluebirds are desperate for points and to make amends for their 5-1 thrashing at home to Watford last Friday.
Sigurdsson scored the only goal of the game when the clubs met at Goodison Park in November, but the former Swansea City playmaker has not convinced a section of his club’s fans since his £45m move 18 months ago.
Gunnarsson, however, reckons his countryman’s contribution to Marco Silva’s team has been under-appreciated.
“He’s a very good player who has scored nine goals this season, so we have to try and keep him quiet,” says Gunnarsson of the friend he has known since they first played together in Iceland at the age of 17.
“I don’t understand some of that criticism he’s had. He’s a proven player in the Premier League.
“I get that he cost a lot of money and that with the price tag comes a lot of pressure. I understand that.
“But he’s got nine goals and five or six assists. You know what you get from players like that and he is probably their most creative player.
“The criticism probably comes with the price tag. But he has a strong mentality and it doesn’t affect him, so we have to be very careful up against him.
“Though, it’s not just him. They have good quality all over the pitch and we will have to be at our best to get something out of the game.”
Gunnarsson was rested by manager Neil Warnock for the thrashing by Watford – a decision that left Cardiff looking decidedly vulnerable without the Nordic warrior anchoring their midfield.
The 29-year-old – who played in both of the back-to-back victories over Bournemouth and Southampton – is set to be recalled tonight, although the Bluebirds will be without on-loan striker Oumar Niasse, who cannot play against his parent club.
Gunnarsson believes his club have proved they can come through adversity this season and feels they can recover quickly from their embarrassing defeat last time out.
“This team has shown a lot of character in recent times and now we have to show it again. We have usually been hard to beat at home and we punish teams when we can.
“Everton have not been playing their best football of late, but we know the quality they have.
“They are the kind of team that can produce a bad game one week, then an amazing game the next. So, we need to be careful.
“Up at their place it was a close scoreline, but a tough game. For most of that game, they were quite comfortable.”
Sigurdsson settled that match and if he scores again this evening – or if Gunnarsson nets a rare goal – then the two will find time for a chat afterwards.
“We are close mates and had a chat afterwards at Goodison. It doesn’t affect our friendship if one of us scores against the other.”
A victory for Cardiff tonight would put them four points clear of the relegation zone and heap the pressure back on Southampton in 18th spot ahead of their game at home to Fulham tomorrow.
Gunnarsson is convinced, though, that Cardiff do have the fighting spirit and character to be still standing in the Premier League after the final day – even if their margin is the narrowest one possible.
“Our late goals show that we never give up, no matter what the score is.
“Getting three winners after 90 minutes shows we never give up and those points have been massive.
“We have to concentrate for a whole 90 minutes, though. We are not good enough to switch off. When we do switch off, we are not a good team and we know that ourselves.
“We have to be consistent. There are going to be weeks when things don’t go our way, but we can’t let that affect us.
“Our main aim is to stay in this league. If it’s by one point, no-one will care. We must continue to fight and become more consistent.
“I believe we can do it. At this stage of the season, we are out of the relegation zone and we would have taken that beforehand.”