SOL SHINES
Sol grabs a precious late winner for the Bluebirds:
16-PAGE PULLOUT – INSIDE
CARDIFF City claimed their second Premier League victory of the season by beating 10-man Brighton 2-1 on Saturday afternoon.
Here we run through the key talking points from the game.
VINCENT TAN’S TIMELY APPEARANCE
The Bluebirds owner was an interested spectator at Cardiff City Stadium as Neil Warnock’s men overcame the Seagulls in dramatic fashion.
And his appearance at the stadium could not have come at a better time as, not only did he get to watch the Bluebirds secure their second triumph of the campaign, but he also witnessed the full scale of the monumental task in hand for the club’s manager.
Callum Paterson was once again deployed as the lone striker, and the Scotland international deserves full credit for his efforts having scored his third goal in four matches.
Elsewhere, Warnock revealed that Joe Ralls and Lee Peltier were both forced back into action earlier than originally planned due to the limited options available to the Yorkshireman.
And while they eventually earned themselves a vital victory at the death, Tan was able to witness in front of his own eyes exactly why Warnock needs to be backed in the January transfer window.
“We have no chance according to the bookies. But when the lads give me everything and if we can bring two or three quality players into the squad in January, then we’ll have as good a chance as any,” said the Cardiff boss after the game.
A forward clearly remains the priority in the winter window for the Bluebirds, but further additions elsewhere in the squad in January could really prove to be the difference between survival and relegation.
THE 16-PASS MOVE
Cardiff simply didn’t get going until Paterson headed in the equaliser in the 28th minute.
Yet while the Bluebirds have been well known for their direct approach under Warnock, their leveller against Brighton was somewhat impressive.
And Warnock himself alluded to his team’s efforts in the build up to the moment that the Scot headed beyond Mat Ryan.
“We get knocked a little bit and yet you look at the first goal we scored, it came from Neil Etheridge, we had 16 passes, and not one of their players touched it, but people will say it’s a long throw,” said the veteran boss.
“I don’t think sometimes our lads get enough credit. It was a wellworked move and a great goal.”
The Warnock Way? I guess we’ll never know what that really is!
A STUNNING REVIVAL
Having fallen behind the likes of Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Josh Murphy and Junior Hoilett in the wing pecking order, Kadeem Harris quickly became something of a forgotten man at Cardiff.
But the 25-year-old was handed his first league start of the season in the win over Brighton.
Harris grew in confidence as the game wore on and looked threatening whenever he got in possession, while he was unfortunate not to get on the scoresheet as his curling strike rattled the crossbar in the second half.
It was a really encouraging showing from the wideman, who Warnock admits he had major concerns over during pre-season.
“He deserves it. He’s been the best player in training for the last six weeks,” said Warnock.
“I didn’t think I’d ever play him if I’m honest at the start of the season, but I’ve changed my mind.
“He’s been an absolute breath of fresh air for me as a manager, every day in training. I’ve had no option but to put him into the squad. I thought every time he got it he was dangerous.
“He was as good as anybody on the pitch.”
It’s some turnaround from the man who could well have missed out on being included in Cardiff’s 25-man Premier League squad altogether just a few months ago.
THE ALARMING TREND THAT SIMPLY HAS TO STOP
Cardiff have conceded in all but two of their 12 league matches so far this season.
In the 10 matches that they’ve shipped goals, the Bluebirds have gone behind on nine occasions, with the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge being the only encounter to buck that miserable trend.
But even more worryingly for the
Bluebirds is the timing at which they have conceded some of their goals.
Lewis Dunk’s sixth-minute opener for Brighton was the fifth occasion this season that the Bluebirds have conceded inside 11 minutes (Arsenal, Tottenham, Fulham and Liverpool being the other matches).
And while he was ultimately delighted with Sol Bamba’s late contribution that earned Cardiff victory, Warnock was less than impressed with the Ivorian’s defending for Brighton’s opening goal.
“No more than 30 seconds before going out, we talked about having to do your bit with the centre-halves. They’re so good at set-pieces,” said the Cardiff boss.
“They’ve won 1-0 how many times in the last few weeks and I bet they thought this could be another one.
“In the old days I’d have taken the cane out today! But you’re not allowed to do that now.
“We worked on it every day this week, and then how long did it take? Six minutes.”
In the end, Bamba made up for his mistake. But as we’ve seen on so many occasions already this season, mistakes will be punished at this level.