Western Mail

Premier pointers... What early-season form tells us about Bluebirds’ chances

- IAN MITCHELMOR­E Football writer ian.mitchelmor­e@walesonlin­e.co.uk

Cardiff City face Burnley and Tottenham in their final two Premier League matches before the second internatio­nal break of the 2018/19 season.

And they’ll be desperatel­y hoping to go into that rest period with a win under their belts.

They slipped into the bottom three for the first time this season after being thrashed 5-0 by champions Manchester City at Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday.

But they’ll certainly fancy their chances when Burnley head to the Welsh capital on Sunday.

So with six games of the season gone, we took a look at what’s been learned from the campaign so far...

The damning goal statistic

CARDIFF’S attacking problems have been well documented so far, with the Bluebirds’ tally of three goals in their opening six league outings coming at a rate of one in every two games.

It’s the exact same record as Huddersfie­ld Town, while Newcastle United have only managed one more than the Bluebirds and the Terriers.

And it’s no coincidenc­e that as a result of their lack of firepower, Newcastle, Cardiff and Huddersfie­ld currently make up the Premier League’s relegation zone.

They’re also the only three sides in the division yet to win a league match this season.

Crystal Palace have proved to be something of an exception so far given that they’re in 11th spot having only scored four goals in six outings, but they’ve been far tighter at the back, conceding only six times compared to 14 for both Cardiff and Huddersfie­ld and eight for Newcastle.

It was a problem Cardiff had before the season even started, and it was one they ultimately were unable to address in the transfer window.

And unless they find goals from somewhere, it’s an issue that’s going to prove costly.

The teams living up to their pre-season billing

AFTER landing the 2017/18 Championsh­ip title in emphatic fashion, Wolves were widely tipped to take the Premier League by storm under Nuno Espirito Santo.

And the Molineux outfit have made a hugely-impressive return to the top flight, losing just one of their first six games, earning nine points from the 18 on offer.

They’ve claimed draws with both Manchester clubs and kept clean sheets in their wins against both West Ham and Burnley.

Granted, they’ve spent money like it’s going out of fashion, but they’re certainly doing the business on the pitch.

Elsewhere, Liverpool were expected to close the gap to last season’s runaway winners Man City after signing the likes of central defender Virgil van Dijk and goalkeeper Alisson this calendar year.

And Jurgen Klopp’s men have swept everyone aside so far this season, being the only side to boast a 100% winning record after six games to sit two points clear of Man City and Chelsea at the top of the table.

They actually face both of their nearest challenger­s in their next two league matches, so the title picture will certainly be a whole lot clearer after October 7.

And those who aren’t...

WEST Ham splashed the cash over the summer, signings the likes of Lukasz Fabianski from Swansea City, Felipe Anderson from Lazio, Andriy Yarmolenko from Borussia Dortmund and Issa Diop from Toulouse, all for big money.

But they made a torrid start to the season, losing their first four matches in a row.

They’ve made something of a resurgence of late, beating Everton at Goodison Park before becoming the first side to take a point from Maurizio Sarri’s Chelsea.

However, there’s a lot of pressure on Manuel Pellegrini’s shoulders given his side’s summer transfer outlay, so it’ll be interestin­g to see if they can maintain their recent upturn in form.

Burnley are another side who were tipped to challenge further up the table after last season’s magnificen­t campaign saw them qualify for Europe.

But they bombed out of the Europa League at the qualifying stage and only moved out of the bottom three at the weekend after landing their first win of the season against Bournemout­h.

The Clarets’ triumph at Turf Moor only intensifie­d what already promises to be a mouth-watering contest when Sean Dyche’s visit the Welsh capital on Sunday afternoon.

The surprise packages

LEICESTER City were somewhat unfortunat­e to be beaten by Manchester United at Old Trafford on the opening day of the campaign, but they’ve responded well by winning three of their next five games to sit in ninth place.

It may be unfair to label the Foxes as surprise packages given that they won the title as recently as the 2015/16 season, but a change in personnel that included the sale of star man Riyad Mahrez to Man City highlights just how well they’ve started the campaign under Claude Puel.

Bournemout­h are another side who have showcased their talents early on, claiming 10 points from their first six fixtures.

But Watford are undoubtedl­y the star performers so far having won their first four games in a row which included a 2-1 success against Tottenham.

The 2017/18 trend that’s continuing

THE final day of the 2017/18 Premier League season was something of a damp squib as the title had long been wrapped up and the relegation spots had virtually been decided, with Swansea failing to achieve the mathematic­al miracle required to extend their stay in the top flight.

When all was said and done, only 11 points separated Newcastle, who finished 10th, and Stoke City, who ended the campaign in 19th place.

A run of four consecutiv­e wins through March and April ultimately pulled the Magpies away from the danger zone while revivals from the likes of Southampto­n and Crystal Palace ensured they managed to beat the drop.

But even a woeful West Brom side who – despite a remarkable turnaround under Darren Moore following the sacking of Alan Pardew – appeared doomed until their late change in manager saw them only five points adrift of survival after a truly torrid campaign.

Victory for Cardiff against Burnley would almost certainly lift Neil Warnock’s men out of the bottom three, for a week at the very least.

And given that every side from Everton below have failed to win more than one of their opening six games, it’s already shaping up to be tight at the bottom.

The way things are going, keeping in touch is seemingly all that matters because it’s increasing­ly looking like around half of the sides in the Premier League could realistica­lly have relegation concerns come the business end of the season.

So, all is far from lost for Cardiff. A positive run here and there could be all it takes.

 ??  ?? > Wolves striker Raul Jimenez celebrates a goal against Burnley
> Wolves striker Raul Jimenez celebrates a goal against Burnley

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