Immediately following my last post, the away game at Brighton was postponed due to fog, and was therefore played later in January. Its been a successful month all things considered, with 4 league wins and 2 defeats. Our league defeats came in away fixtures at 2 of the top 3 teams in the division - Brighton and Reading. There was also a forgettable defeat to Fulham in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup.
Results since my last post:-
CARDIFF 1 ASTON VILLA 0
CARDIFF 1 FULHAM 2 (FA Cup)
BRISTOL CITY 2 CARDIFF 3
CARDIFF 1 BURTON ALBION 0
BRIGHTON 1 CARDIFF 0
READING 2 CARDIFF 1
CARDIFF 2 PRESTON 0
The first match of the New Year came against Aston Villa, who were just starting to get to terms with their relegation from the Premier League last season. Neil Warnock clearly set out the team to minimise the risk of conceding any goals, with Sol Bamba rather unusually playing as a defensive midfielder in front of the centre backs. The plan worked perfectly, as a slightly fortuitous goal from Joe Ralls after 15 minutes proved to be good enough for a 1-0 win. This was the first clean sheet for the defence for a while (and only the third of the season to that point), and further proof of how the manager has improved the team.
READING 2 CARDIFF 1
CARDIFF 2 PRESTON 0
The first match of the New Year came against Aston Villa, who were just starting to get to terms with their relegation from the Premier League last season. Neil Warnock clearly set out the team to minimise the risk of conceding any goals, with Sol Bamba rather unusually playing as a defensive midfielder in front of the centre backs. The plan worked perfectly, as a slightly fortuitous goal from Joe Ralls after 15 minutes proved to be good enough for a 1-0 win. This was the first clean sheet for the defence for a while (and only the third of the season to that point), and further proof of how the manager has improved the team.
Joe Calls scrambles home the winner against Villa.
The following week saw a home tie against Fulham in the 3rd round of the FA cup. Neil Warnock clearly did not see this as a priority and put out a notably weaker side. The least said about this the better. The FA cup continues its decline as a competition.
Then came an eventful Severnside derby against our closest (geographical) neighbours Bristol City. Of course, the Neil Warnock era at Cardiff City began with the home fixture against them. When that match was played last October, Bristol City were in 6th place in the championship and playing well. However, they have had an alarming (for them) decline since, and when this match kicked off both teams had the same number of league points. The game turned out to be a 5 goal thriller, with Bristol taking the lead twice, but late goals from Kadeem Harris and a screamer from Anthony Pilkington sealed a late Bluebirds win!
Anthony Pilkington strikes a classy winner against the Wurzels!
The following home game against Burton Albion was a bit of an anti-climax and a dreadful game, only raised by a stoppage time winner from Rhys Healey - his first Championship goal for the club. Rhys has spent the first half of the season on loan at Newport County, but now has his chance to try to impress the new manager here.
Following his, there were 2 away games against teams hoping to make it into the Premier League next season. The team set up in a very defensive manner for the re-arranged Brighton fixture, and held on until the 76th minute before going behind. At Reading, manager Neil Warnock was disappointed not to come away with at least a point, but another creditable defeat against a very good side. What theses two matches clearly illustrate is how competitive the team has become, and are capable of giving anyone a game.
And so to last night's 2-0 win over Preston (our 3rd home clean sheet in a row). In the first half the team put together one of their best performances for some time, looking very good when attacking and deservedly going in 2-0 up at half time.
The highlight of the game, and probably of the season, was the fantastic individual goal scored by Kenneth Zohore. He latched on to a Peter Whittingham clearance inside his own half, then beat 3 defenders as he progressed up the field and chipped the ball over the keeper into the net. A fantastic goal, and well worth searching for on Youtube if you haven't already seen it. Take a bow, son!
Kenneth Zohore chips the keeper for a fantastic goal!
So - What now?
Well, the team is now in 15th position in the league - 11 points above the relegation places and 10 points below the playoff places. Although like most supporters I always fear the worst, I am fairly confident we can avoid relegation now. And it looks to be far too much to get into the playoff places. So, mid table is looking like our fate. I'm hoping we can at least finish the season in the top half of the table, and perhaps then our Malaysian owners may back Neil Warnock financially for another crack at promotion next year? Lets hope its onwards and upwards!
