Bogle to the rescue as Warnock’s men grab draw
OMAR Bogle’s sublime free-kick spared Cardiff City’s blushes as they were held to a 1-1 draw by New Mexico United in the second game of their pre-season tour of north America.
Bogle came off the bench to curl home midway through the second half, after Ken Akamatsu had previously given the hosts the lead after just two minutes.
The 25-year old’s moment of magic lit up a contest that saw the Bluebirds struggle to get out of second gear in the opening exchanges, although they did create chances.
Bobby Reid tapped an effort onto the post, before Josh Murphy had a very strong penalty shout waved away, but it was ultimately forgotten man Bogle who produced the quality needed to make a breakthrough.
Fellow substitute Curtis Nelson could have won it late on, but could only divert his downward header onto the crossbar.
Having spent the last seasonand-a-half out on loan, this will have felt like a small piece of redemption for the former Grimsby Town star, and will give his boss plenty to ponder, particularly within the context of a striker search that has become all the more pronounced in light of Kenneth Zohore’s imminent departure.
Indeed, the surprise high-profile departures of Zohore and Bruno Manga arguably overshadowed Cardiff’s preparations for this contest.
And, while it’s important not to read too much into these sorts of games, this performance will have done little to ease any concerns over City’s transfer dealings this summer.
Cardiff now play Real Valladolid in Edmonton, Canada, in the early hours of tomorrow (0200BST).