Warnock eyes rare record

– Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock (above) could make English football history this weekend by notching a record eighth promotion as the Bluebirds seek to return to the Premier League after four years.

If Fulham lost to Sunderland in a late game last night, Cardiff would go up by beating Hull City in their penultimate game today. More likely, the race will go to the final day on May 6 but, with Cardiff having a one-point advantage over their London rivals, they remain clear favourites. For the 69-year-old Warnock, who is one year older than Arsene Wenger, promotion would represent the crowning glory on a career that began more than half-a-century ago as a winger with Chesterfield.

After a non-distinguished playing career, Warnock has made his mark as a manager, going up seven times in a career spent with 15 different clubs over 38 years, a promotion record he shares with Dave Bassett, Graham Taylor and Jim Smith.

Much of that time has been spent in England’s lower leagues although he has also taken two teams, Sheffield United and Queens Park Rangers, into the Premier League where he also managed with Crystal Palace.

For all his travelling, Warnock has always embraced his image as the caretaker of the English game’s traditional values, a role which sometimes put him into conflict with other managers.

Earlier this season, he accused Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola of “blowing hot air out of his mouth” for complaining about Cardiff’s roughhouse tactics during their FA Cup fourth-round clash in January.

Yet Warnock’s feisty approach belies a fine ability to communicate with his players. – Reuters

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