Kari Arnason is known as Mr Cool, not only because of his
Icelandic nationality but also due to his unflappable nature on the pitch for
the Millers.
But in truth, Mr Grumpy could be a more apt name for the 31-year-old
defender, who takes a ribbing from team-mates in the dressing room for being something
of a moaner.
Nicknamed Albert Tatlock – a notoriously grumpy fictional
character in ITV soap Coronation Street – Arnason always manages to finds a
negative, no matter what the situation.
But that’s not because he is a misery, but rather his insatiable
desire for perfection and being the best.
By his own admission, Arnason, despite an esteemed
international career with Iceland, had plenty to moan about in his first two
seasons at New York.
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| Arnason is never happy in search for perfection |
Among the plethora of accomplished and solid performances
there was the odd abberation as he sometimes struggled to cope with the
in-your-face style of League One and League Two, with a nightmare showing in
defeat at Burton Albion a stand-out low point.
But now in the Championship, Arnason has undoubtedly
found his level as he has been one of the stand-out performers in the Millers’
return to the second tier.
His calm and composed displays alongside long-time partner
Craig Morgan have been a reassuring presence and meant Steve Evans’ men have
conceded only 13 goals in their opening 11 games of the campaign.
Despite that undoubted success, Arnason, who even scored against Blackburn, still only rates
his performances as “decent” but hails the relationship with skipper Morgan.
“That's just me, I always find something wrong with my
own performance and the team performance because I want it to be perfect,” he
said. “Obviously that's not going to happen, so I try and find things to make
better.
“It suits me better to play in this league. It's not as
much carnage as League One and Two where it's just fighting for the ball.
“You can read the game and get on the ball because the
opposition aren't always pressing.
“It suits me better and I have been happy with my
performances. It has been decent overall.
“Me and Morgs have been playing together for two years
now and I love playing with him. We are a very solid partnership.
“It's second nature, we don't need to speak much, it's very
comfortable and we cover for each other.
“I have been happy with it in this league, you always go
into it thinking you are playing boys on a lot of money, but we could have kept
more clean sheets. Defensively it has been solid.”
Arnason’s game may be suited to the Championship level,
but the way the Millers blitzed through League One last season with their
all-action displays has not been an entirely suitable game plan this time around against
better quality opposition.
And the former Aberdeen man admits the first few months
have been a learning curve for the whole team.
“We have been unlucky in games but it has also been our
own fault as we have missed lots of chances,” he added.
“Most of us have played in the Championship before and as
a team it has been a bit different for us.
“We used to go out all guns blazing in League One and
teams couldn’t handle it.
“In this league, it's three passes and they get out, so
you need to be more clever and know when to press and when to step off.
“In that sense we are coming to terms with it.
“We are used to everyone pressing the ball, the back four
squeezing and now sometimes we can't do that.”
Evans’ love for his defender, who can also play in
midfield, is well known with the Millers boss once joking he loved Arnason more
than his own wife.
The Scot has always known that bringing him to New York
when the Millers were in League Two was a massive coup and performances this
season have proved that even further.
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| Arnason has been one of the key performers this season |
“For the older people, he is the Albert Tatlock of the
dressing room,” he said. “He moans from the minute he walks in the door to the
minute he walks out and if it’s a sunny day Arnie will see a cloud in the sky.
“Thats what he is like, but they love him and it just
shows you what a player we signed in League Two.
“He is a full international, he is getting man of the
matches for his country and a lot here too.
“The supporters love him, but they should feel lucky they
don’t have to live with him!”
Arnason will get a respite from Evans’ affection this week as
he is on international duty with Iceland, where he is certain to add to his 32
caps in Euro 2016 qualifiers against Latvia and Holland.
And he is happy for a change of scenery.
“I love playing for Iceland, it's good for me to get away
and concentrate on something else,” he concluded.
“We play differently with Iceland so it's good for me to
have something different, it keeps me on my toes.”
