Runar Alex Runarsson responded to some of his recent critics with a clean sheet for Cardiff City against Millwall on Saturday.
Despite breaking back into Cardiff City’s starting lineup recently, Arsenal loanee Runar Alex Runarsson came in for some criticism for his positioning in his first game back.
The critics didn’t let up over the next couple of games, as Cardiff lost to West Brom and Southampton.
But it’s fair to say there was much less to complain at the goalkeeper for in those games, as there was little he could have done about any of the goals.
All the same, the Iceland international had a point to prove against Millwall this weekend, and he did so with a clean sheet.
The Cardiff goalkeeper made three saves, preventing 0.86 expected goals, and he helped the team to their second win in four matches, matching their two wins in the previous seven before his return to the team.
In fact, it was a goalkeeping error at the other end which decided the game, with Matija Sarkic letting a header squirm past him when he probably should have stopped it.
It will take a few more strong performances for Runarsson to win the Cardiff fans over, as Jak Alnwick is a popular alternative at the Welsh club.
Alnwick kept six clean sheets in his 15 games in the side, and it was somewhat surprising to see him drop out. Even if he did concede three goals in a poor performance in his last game against Norwich City.
Runarsson will have to convince the fans he’s a better option than the former Newcastle United man, and keeping a few clean sheets of his own would be a good way to start.