WARNOCK BOOT WAS BOOST FOR MURRAY

BRIGHTON star Glenn Murray has huge respect for Cardiff’s Neil Warnock – because of the way the straight-talking boss dumped him.

Warnock broke Murray’s heart as Crystal Palace manager in 2014 when he told the striker he wasn’t in his plans and should go out on loan.

Considering Murray (above) had banged in 31 goals for the Eagles two years previously, and just recovered from major knee surgery, it was hard to take.

But, bizarrely, it has left the 35-year-old forward with a warm feeling towards the Bluebirds boss.

Murray said: “Actually,

I’m full of respect for Neil because I needed him to be honest with me – and he was.

“He told me I wasn’t very high in his plans and that gave me the opportunity to go out to Reading on loan and rediscover my goalscoring form.

“I’ve got nothing but thanks to him for that. A lot of managers keep you hanging around and say you will get a chance when they know you won’t.”

So there will be no hard feelings when Murray is reunited with Warnock in Cardiff today, having played only two games under the no-nonsense boss.

He said: “You know, sometimes that honesty is difficult to find in football. He was brutally honest with me. It’s difficult to sugarcoat something like that and of course it was tough to take – but all the same I needed to hear it.”

Last season he scored 12 goals in the top flight and this year he already has six.

No wonder Warnock says that ditching the striker now looks like one of his worst-ever decisions!

“Did he say that? Well, I’m just glad it has gone well for me,” said Murray.

“Cardiff deserve to be in the Premier League first and foremost – and the long-ball game is the way they got here.

“I just think it’s horses for courses. There’s different ways to skin a cat, isn’t there?

“If everybody played the same brand of football it would be pretty boring.”

Brighton are still without injured Pascal Gross and Davy Propper and have major doubts over winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh and goalkeeper David Button.