Tough times.

We head to the last quarter of the season with the threat of relegation still present. Two consecutive wins gave us hope, but 3 subsequent poor performances have once again put us into he bottom 3. The odds remain against us, but we aren't the only team worried and there must be similar concern from one or two other teams near us in the table. Despite the run of defeats, we are only one win away from getting out of the relegation places, so lets try not to get too despondent yet.


RESULTS SINCE LAST BLOG:

NEWCASTLE 3 CARDIFF 0

ARSENAL 2 CARDIFF 1

CARDIFF 2 BOURNEMOUTH 0

SOUTHAMPTON 1 CARDIFF 2

CARDIFF 1 WATFORD 5

CARDIFF 0 EVERTON 3

WOLVES 2 CARDIFF 0


The early part of this run of fixtures was interrupted by the Emiliano Sala tragedy mentioned in my post of 28/01/2019. However, in the weekend before the incident took place, we visited St James Park to face Newcastle United. this seems to have been one of the worst performances of the season (at that point) where we easily capitulated to a Newcastle  team not much higher in the table than ourselves.

There was then a 10 day gap until our next fixture at the Emirates Stadium against Arsenal. The Sala tragedy was still fresh in our minds at the time, and reports of a much improved Cardiff performance was largely ignored. Although a 2-1 win for Arsenal, a notable incident late in the game saw a stoppage time goal from Nathaniel Mendez-Laing. NML is one of only 2 active Premier League players to have scored in all 4 top levels of the EFL/Premier League in the last 4 seasons ( the other is Alfie Mawson of Fulham).

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing

The form continued into the next fixture at home to Bournemouth. An early penalty was put away by Bobby Decordova-Reid and Cardiff kept the game well under control until half time. Then, immediately after halftime Reid was put away again and calmly rolled the ball into the net for a 2-0. A large section of the crowd, myself included, were pretty sure that he had been offside when he received the ball. But subsequent replays on Match of the Day that night confirmed that he was fractionally ON side and the goal was correctly awarded. This ended up being a comfortable win against an infuriating Bournemouth team who look top 6 material one week and a bottom 6 a week later!

Bobby Decordova-Reid scores the penalty against Bournemouth.

Next was a trip to Southampton where we achieved one of only 2 away wins on our last trip to the Premier League. The points seemed to have been won when Sol Bamba gave the Bluebirds the lead in the 69th minute. A late onslaught from the Saints aw then break Cardiff hearts after a minute of stoppage time with a late equaliser. Except there was still more time left, and in the 93rd minute of play, Kenneth Zohore scored his first goal of the season and sent the Cardiff fans home extremely happy, having achieved our first "double" of the season.

Kenneth Zohore celebrates the winner at Southampton

It was after this game that things started to go wrong. A disastrous home defeat to a decent Watford team by 5-1. We were still in the game just after halftime despite being a goal behind, when a classy break by Delofeu of Watford put them 2 ahead. Then, for the first time at home this season, the team folded badly.

What was more worrying was the 3-0 home defeat to Everton 4 days later, where we very much returned to our early season form of poor defending and no creative ability in midfield.

Then followed a 2-0 defeat at Wolves which could have been a lot worse, although at least there was some spirit shown despite going 2 behind after only 18 minutes. The more worrying factor from this game was a serious injury to Sol Bamba - subsequently found to be a routed ACL - which will keep him out for the rest of the season. Let's hope he can be the spiritual leader of the team from the sidelines!

Sol Bamba - serious injury at Molineux.

SO. Do we want to stay up?

Although it looks almost impossible, there are still 9 games left where we can possibly ensure our Premier League survival. But then what? Do we find ourselves in the same position as Huddersfield have been this season? Hopelessly outclassed and badly lacking in quality players? Or would we be better off returning to the Championship to regroup and get ourselves back up again, perhaps having learned a few lessons. After all, a number of teams - Watford and Crystal Palace  notably - spent a number of years bouncing between the Premier League and the Championship before establishing themselves. West Brom, too, were a yo-yo team who stabilised for a while before their relegation last season.

My opinion, for what it's worth, is to hope for Premier League survival. But (gasp!) we will need a new manager and substantial team investment if we are not to become another Huddersfield.

More to life than football.

How on earth do you start to write about the tragic events of the past week? As I sit down to compose this blog entry, it is 6 days since the light aircraft carrying our new Argentinian striker Emiliano Sala and pilot Dave Ibbotson went missing over the English Channel en route between Nantes and Cardiff. The main search was called off last week when the authorities confirmed that there was no sign of the aircraft or any chance of survival in the January sea temperatures in the English Channel. A public GoFundMe page has raised money for the search to be privately funded and restarted this week, but this is likely to be only a task which may eventually (hopefully) give closure to his family and friends.

I'm not going to speculate here on the causes and events leading up to the disappearance of the plane, or try to apportion blame. There will be time for that in the weeks and months (or even years) to come. Suffice to say that a young life has been lost at the peak of his career and abilities, having just signed the biggest deal of his career only 2 days previously.

Emiliano Sala signs for Cardiff City.

The club finds itself the centre of World football attention. The club management, particularly the Chief Executive Ken Choo and Chairman Mehmet Dalman, have dealt with the situation impeccably in the circumstances. The club supporters have also played their part in tributes to a player who they never met and will never see play. However, he is already considered as "one of our own" and will never be forgotten. The supporters of his previous club Nantes  are also grieving for a player they knew well.

The first team return to football this week but it seems a little unimportant at times like this. I'll resume my match reports soon. In the meantime, let's hope that Emiliano Sala is able to Rest in Peace.

Fan tributes outside the Cardiff City Stadium.

Hang on in there!

The busy Christmas period has been and gone, and as we approach the middle of January we are still outside the relegation places, albeit by one point. There have been some good performances and some indifferent performances, but we still mange to keep getting towards the total of  points we need. I'm pretty sure 35 points will be enough to keep us up this season - that means 16 points from 16 games - but 4 of those games are against the Big 6 teams, so effectively that means 16points  from 12 games. Surely that's possible? 

Yet again, scoring goals has been a problem. But, looking on the bright side, we have kept a clean sheet in 3 of our last 4 games, so we are half way there!

Results since last blog entry:-

CARDIFF 1 SOUTHAMPTON 0

WATFORD 3 CARDIFF 2

CARDIFF 1 MANCHESTER UNITED 5

CRYSTAL PALACE 0 CARDIFF 0

LEICESTER 0 CARDIFF 1

CARDIFF 0 SPURS 3

GILLINGHAM 1 CARDIFF 0 (FA Cup)

CARDIFF 0 HUDDERSFIELD 0

We seem to have a run of playing teams who have recently had a crisis in the week before their visit to the Cardiff City Stadium. Southampton sacked their manager Mark Hughes in the week prior to the relegation zone fixture against us back at the beginning of December. Their new manager, Ralph Hassenhuttl , was taking charge of his first game. A hard working performance against a newly revitalised Southampton saw Calum Paterson score the only goal in a valuable 3 points for the Bluebirds. Southampton appear a better team under their new manager, and so this appears to be a very important win.

Callum Paterson cooly slots home the winner against Southampton

The away game at Watford was notable for 4 absolutely top class goals. Unfortunately, the first 3 of those were scored by Watford! We didn't start to play until we were 3-0 behind, but the pundits suggest we deserved at least a draw from the game.

Junior Hoilett lines up his stunning first goal at Watford.

Manchester United came to Cardiff just before Christmas. Yet again, we were playing a team who had replaced their manager in the week before the game. Ironically, their new manager was Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who had seen Cardiff relegated from the Premier League 5 years ago. An unfortunate early goal from a free kick made it very difficult for Cardiff, followed by a goal from a wicked deflection. It is always going to be difficult for us to get anything from the top 6 clubs in the league, but this was a particularly poor capitulation by Cardiff against a newly rejuvenated Manchester United team celebrating the departure of Jose Mourhino.

Given our performance last Christmas when we lost all four games over the festive period, fans could be understood to have quite a high level of trepidation approaching the next two away games. But these games turned out to be a positive experience. A dour 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace on Boxing Day was followed with a late Victor Camarasa winner at Leicester 4 days later! Our first away win of the season! 4 very welcome away points over the festive appearance.

Victor Camarasa scores the stoppage time winner against Leicester - our first away win of the season!

On New Years Day, we faced another top 6 side in Tottenham Hotspur. Unfortunately, this was another early capitulation by Cardiff who were 3-0 down after only 20 minutes of the game. It is rather a bizarre statistic that we haven't been ahead at half time in any game this season. I'm not sure if this was as a result of the away fixtures during the previous week, but this was a rather lacklustre performance.

The first Saturday in January was always looked forward to as the 3rd Round of the FA Cup. However, since the commencement of the Premier League and all of the promised riches that brings, the FA Cup has lost importance. Thus, Cardiff put out a much weakened team at League one Gillingham and managed to lose 1-0. Many of the most important players were rested. At one time, this would have been seen as a major embarrassment for the team. but in these more pragmatic days where the league is so important, this was seen as a 'blessing in disguise' by most fans. It is noticeable that many of the teams near the bottom of the Premier League and the top of the Championship managed to lose against lower quality opposition in the third round of the FA Cup, thus giving them more time to concentrate on the league.

Last Saturday saw another bottom of the table "6 pointer" against one of our relegation rivals Huddersfield Town - a team who find it even harder to score goals than we do! Therefore, it was no surprise that the match ended in a 0-0 draw. This point was of more use to us than it was to Huddersfield, who at the moment are 8 points away from safety. that single point keeps us out of the bottom 3 before another "6 pointer" away to Newcastle, the team immediately below us in the table.

STOP PRESS

It appears that we have signed Everton's Senegalese striker Oumar Niasse on loan until the end of the season - a definite upgrade on the striking options available to the team at present. 

The club is still rumoured to be pursuing Argentine striker Emiliano Sala from Ligue 1 club Nantes, but at present that deal is not near completion. It will be interesting to see by my next update whether these deals will have come off!

8pm Thursday 17th January 2019

A Tale of 3 Leagues within 1.

Some positives at home and some negatives away during the last month. At the time of composing this post, we find ourselves out of the bottom 3 in the table. 

However, the table is beginning to split into 3 distinct  'mini-leagues':-

• A top 5 of Man City, Liverpool , Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea (with a "sub group" of Man City and Liverpool at the top).
• A middle 8, of Bournemouth, Everton, ManUtd, Leicester, Brighton, Watford , West Ham and Wolves
• A bottom 7 of Fulham, Huddersfield, Burnley, Crystal Palace, Newcastle, Southampton and of course Cardiff.

I can't see these 3 'mini' leagues changing much before the end of the season. It is possible that Wolves may end up down in the bottom group, and that maybe Newcastle will make it into the middle group, particularly as there is the possibility of a new owner soon who may have the resources to move them up the table. But apart from that, I think the tables have been set.

This makes our results against the other teams in our mini league particularly important, continuing this weekend with a vital home game against Southampton. Including this Saturday, we only have 2 more home games against our rivals in the bottom 7, so a win is essential. So far we have taken 5 points off our closest rivals so an improvement is needed. On our last trip to the Premier League we finished bottom and were relegated with 30 points. With the current form being shown by the teams at the bottom, it is quite possible  that a team could stay up with 30 points this year! One of the main reasons behind this is the dominance of Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the table - if their current form continues they are both on course to achieve over 100 points this season, thus reducing the number of points available for everyone else!

RESULTS SINCE MY LAST POST:

CARDIFF 0 LEICESTER 1

CARDIFF 2 BRIGHTON 1

EVERTON 1 CARDIFF 0

CARDIFF 2 WOLVES 1

WEST HAM 3 CARDIFF 1

This run of matches began with a home game against Leicester City. The occasion was made extra emotional as it was Leicester's first game following the sudden death of their owner in a helicopter crash near the Kingpower Stadium a week previously. 

The teams pay their respects before the game.

Cardiff gave a good account of themselves during this game, but continued to lack the creativity to put the Leicester defence under any sustained pressure. A second half Demarai Gray goal decided the game.

A week later it was a Saturday lunchtime kick off against mid table Brighton. As usual, we gave away the first goal after only 8 minutes. But perhaps the main turning point in the game came after 37 minutes when Dale Stephens got sent off for a reckless challenge. Cardiff had already equalised Lewis Dunk's early goal when Calum Paterson finished off an excellent Cardiff move. In the second half, Brighton made the mistake of trying to defend deeply, and their luck finally ran out in the 90th minute when Sol Bamba crashed the ball into the roof of the net for a late winner. He even managed to avoid a yellow card for excessive celebration as the referee didn't notice him taking his shirt off!

Sol Bamba celebrates the late winner against Brighton - he doesn't take his shirt off!

A week later came the trip to Goodison Park to play Everton. Cardiff haven't beaten Everton for more than 60 years  - and the run continues. A second half Gylfi Siggurdsonn goal ensured that another creditable performance went unrewarded.

Former Swansea hero Gylfi Siggurdssonn scores the Everton winner.

Once again our game was chosen by SKY TV for coverage, and so the game against Wolves was moved to a Friday evening. This brought back some nightmares, following 2 missed stoppage time penalties against our promotion rivals last April! But this time the game went our way! Once again, we gave away the first goal following some poor marking at a corner (we have only scored first in 1 of our 14 games!). But the endeavour shown by the players brought rewards in the second half, where persistent Cardiff pressure and a determination to win the 'second ball' finally paid off with an equaliser from Aron Gunnarsson !

Aron Gunnarsson gets the equaliser !

Continued Cardiff pressure brought an extravagant and instinctive shot from Junior Hoillet - his first goal of the season (subsequently awarded the "Goal of the Month" title on BBC Match of the Day). A very encouraging performance against a team thought to be 'better' than us - a victory for endeavour over skill!

I had to put this picture in - Calum Paterson celebrates Junior  Hoillet's goblin his own way!!!

Then came a rather unusual thing for the Premier League - a midweek game! This was away at the London Stadium to West Ham. This match turned after a missed penalty by Joe Ralls after 35 minutes when the scores were still level at 0-0. Cardiff started poorly in the second half and gave away 3 goals in the first 15 minutes, therefore ending the game as a contest. It wasn't one of our better games and probably best forgotten with the vital game against Southampton coming up this Saturday.

As we enter December, with 5 games to come (3 away), lets hope we can do better than last season when we had our worst run of the season losing 4 consecutive games! Then the January transfer window opens! Lets hope we can get ourselves into a fairly strong position before that happens!

12 noon. 6th December 2018.

Reports of our relegation are a little premature.

Finally we have a little positivity to report! Also, some of the pundits are starting to acknowledge that we might not be quite as much of a hopeless case as was first thought! I'm not getting carried away here, and the odds are still probably in favour of us being relegated this season, but its amazing what a win can do for a team and supporters.

Its been a tough start to the season, especially as 5 of our last 7 matches have been against teams in the "Top 6". These games are always going to be difficult against world class players, many of whom cost more individually than our whole team put together. As we approach November and December, we now have almost 2 months until we play a top 6 team. If we're going to avoid relegation this season, then results in the next couple of months need to start going our way.

Results since the last blog:-

CARDIFF 1 BURNLEY 2

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 1 CARDIFF 0

CARDIFF 4 FULHAM 2

LIVERPOOL 4 CARDIFF 1.

Josh Murphy is thwarted for a second goal against Burnley by former England number 1 Joe Hart.

After the comprehensive defeat by Man City a week previously (the only game so far where we have been completely out of our depth), the game against Burnley was looked upon as a much easier alternative. Burnley had had a difficult start to the season, juggling around the demands of the Europa League with the Premier League. At times they have looked poor, and it was this that made the match so much more frustrating! After being out played by many of our opponents this season, this time it was our turn to outplay them! But we then managed to lose, despite dominating possession, chances and just about any other statistic in the game. Burnley had 2 attempts on goal and scored from them both. A slightly disheartening defeat 2-1.

A  week later was a trip to Wembley, which remains the temporary home of Tottenham Hotspur. Spurs had had a European tie earlier in the week, albeit at home, which it was hoped might have affected their performance. Unfortunately an early Eric Dier goal proved to be enough on another encouraging afternoon for the Bluebirds. This was the first time that any of the TV pundits actually gave us any credit, suggesting that we could have easily got at least a point from the match. But it wasn't to be. Unfortunately, Joe Ralls managed to pick up a red  card in this match for a rather reckless tackle on Lucas Mora. The club decided to try to appeal this red card but were unsuccessful  - the right decision in my opinion.

Joe Ralls brings down Lucas Moura.

The home game to Fulham was now considered to be a "must win" game, even though less than a quarter of the season had passed! The team were certainly up for the game and completely dominated the first 10 minutes, only for Fulham to score completely against the run of play with an outstanding goal after only 10 minutes. but within a further 10 minutes we were back in front 2-1 thanks to goals from Josh Murphy and Bobby Decordova-Reid. 

Bobby Decordova-Reid celebrates his first Premier League goal against Fulham.

Then followed the customary goal by Fulham's Ryan Sessegnon, who has played against us 5 times and scored in every game! 2-2 at half time, but in the second half the Bluebirds continued to apply the pressured were rewarded with goals from makeshift (?) striker Callum Paterson and a late clincher from Kadeem Harris.

Before we get too carried away, we must remember that Fulham were very poor in this game and defensively were very inept. but this was a positive performance by the Bluebirds and achieved a much deserved win. We were even the second game on Match of the Day, where yet again the pundits were encouraging.

Callum Paterson scores at Anfield.

So, after our first win of the season, there followed a trip to Anfield to face Liverpool, joint favourites to win the Premier League this season. Liverpool haven't lost a Premier League game there for a long time, and hadn't conceded a home goal for 10 matches. I'm told that a 4-1 Liverpool win flattered the home side a little, and we caused them a little consternation when Callum Paterson scored for the second game running to reduce the deficit to 2-1. But another honourable loss.

THE LEICESTER GAME

Last Saturday evening the owner of Leicester City Football club was killed in a helicopter crash outside the King Power Stadium. After much consideration and after consulting the Leicester players, their next game will be against the Bluebirds at the Cardiff City Stadium tomorrow (3rd November 2018). It is bound to be an emotional occasion, and I'm sure that the Cardiff fans will support their football family from Leicester.

Floral tributes outside the Kingpower stadium this week.

I've always felt that we have a lot in common with Leicester - a similar sized city with a team playing in blue and white. Their Premier League win 2 years ago gives hope to us  smaller teams that big money will not always win out, and there is always a slim chance that a club like Cardiff could also win the Premier League one day. Its nearly 5 years since we played them last, as they got promoted to the Premier League in the season we got relegated. when we first moved into the Cardiff City Stadium we seemed to be playing them regularly, as there were playoff games and at least 3 cup ties all within a couple of seasons! It will undoubtedly be an emotional occasion.

Now is the time to Step Up.

As we approach the end of September, we find ourselves without a win and only 3 goals scored, with 2 points and only one team below us in the Premier League table. Are we downhearted? Well, a bit. But, as regular readers of this blog know, I am a "glass half full" kind of supporter. In the words of the immortal Corporal Jones from 'Dad's Army', "Don't Panic!". 

Our last 3 matches have been against 3 of the 'big 6' teams of the Premier League, including Manchester City who are probably one of the 5 best teams in the world at present. Despite 3 losses, we have acquitted ourselves with pride and resilience, even though we have been outscored in those matches by a total of 3 goals for and 12 against. Our season, and any chance we have of avoiding relegation, will not be defined by our results against the top 6, but by our results against the rest of the league, starting with the game at home to Burnley next Sunday.

The gulf in class between ourselves and the top 6 is considerable. (The gap between Manchester City and Arsenal, both teams in the top 6, is also considerable!). But the difference between the teams between 7th and 20th is nowhere near as great, and if we are to stand any chance of avoiding relegation then it is against those teams that we have to do well. Our next 6 home games are against teams from that category, and these are the games where we need to pick up points. Its not going to be easy, and the odds are clearly against our low budget team, but now is the time to really 'give it a go'!


Results since my last blog.

HUDDERSFIELD 0 CARDIFF 0

CARDIFF 1 NORWICH 3 (Caraboa Cup)

CARDIFF 2 ARSENAL 3

CHELSEA 4 CARDIFF 1

CARDIFF 0 MANCHESTER CITY 5

The games.

I made the trip to Huddersfield with my son to watch my first away game for 35 years! This was a game we should really have won, as for the second week running our opponents were reduced to 10 players for the last half hour of the game. Unlike the previous game against Newcastle, we seemed to improve once our opponents were reduced. We put on lots of pressure for the last half hour, and unfortunately Sean Morrison missed a clear cut chance from a corner. But unfortunately we had to settle for an away point at the end of the day. I suspect that Huddersfield are going to be struggling in a similar manner to ourselves this season.

 John Smiths Stadium , Huddersfield.

Following this game was a very low key defeat at home to Norwich in the Caraboa Cup. To put it simply, their reserves were better than our reserves in a game where neither side was particularly enthusiastic.

Then came our first home game against one of the big Premier League clubs - Arsenal. Arsenal are probably the weakest of the top 6 teams, getting used to a new manager and still rebuilding a side. However, they still have a number of individual players of exceptional talent. A number of their players cost more individually than our entire team! it was a game where we played well at times, were not over-awed by the occasion and twice pulled back to equalise after Arsenal took the lead. A late Lacazette goal (a £60m player!) sealed the points for Arsenal.

Danny Ward celebrates the second equaliser against Arsenal.

At Chelsea in our next game we even held the lead for 15 minutes after Sol Bamba put us into a shock lead. But the class of Eden Hazzard, one of the top players in world football, finally undid us in this game, where he scored a hat trick. I have seen little of this game, but reports suggest that the final score of 4-1 to Chelsea was not quite a true reflection of how well we had played for much of the game.

Sol Bamba gives us the lead for the first (and only) time this season!

And finally, last Saturday, our home game to Manchester City. Most true fans are appreciative of how good our opponents were. We kept them at bay for more than half an hour, but their first shot on target resulted in their first goal, and more followed at steady intervals. Its never nice watching your team lose 5-0, but I've seen far more disappointing and frustrating defeats than this over my years of supporting Cardiff. The match was made extra difficult for us following Man City's surprise home defeat in the Champions League earlier  in the week. They clearly weren't going to make the same mistake again. Quite simply, Manchester City are a fantastic side and I wouldn't want to bet against them winning the Premier League again this season.

Now the real season begins! 

As mentioned above, we now have six home games coming up which could well define our season. Especially as our next 2 away games are at Tottenham and Liverpool! Unfortunately, our next opponents Burnley seem to have returned to form recently following a 4-0 home win over Bournemouth. Hopefully, our home support will spur the team on this week and increase their confidence. Despite our poor run of results, the supporters have remained firmly behind the team and their voices will be crucial if we are to get out of this! Lets hope we get the result we need.

Encouraging!

We are Premier League again! This post is composed after the second match of the Premier League season, and at least we have gained our first point!

RESULTS:

BOURNEMOUTH 2 CARDIFF 0

CARDIFF 0 NEWCASTLE 0

New Signings.

In the week leading up to the start of the season, Neil Warnock and the club managed to make 2 important additions to the squad ready for the Premier League season. It was quite obvious to most City fans and commentators that we needed some more quality in midfield to support Joe Ralls. It was also hoped that we might be able to add a striker with Premier League experience to challenge and support Kenneth Zohore. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible to get a striker. However, we were able to get the 2 midfield players that we needed.

 Victor Camarasa (in Real Betis colours)

The first of theses came from a team who we played in pre-season. Victor Camarasa from Real Betis in Spain on a season long loan. This in some ways is a 'typical' Neil Warnock signing - a player that basically that no one had ever heard of! However, he did start 26 games in La Liga for Betis last season and has played for one or two other Spanish teams over the last 3 seasons.

Harry Arter.

The second player was a little more familiar  - Harry Arter from fellow Premier League team Bournemouth. The Republic of Ireland international was a regular for Bournemouth in their rise to the Premier League but had not played a first team game since last January. Reports suggest that he had fallen out with Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe. He also joins on a season long loan.

Due to the late signing of these two players, neither was available for the first match of the season at Bournemouth.

BOURNEMOUTH 2 CARDIFF 0

Unfortunately I saw little of this match as I was still on a family holiday and have had to rely third hand for information. Reports suggest that we were a bit nervous early on, allowing Bournemouth to take charge and get a deserved lead at half time. We had a chance to equalise from a corner but couldn't get the ball over the line. Bournemouth scored their second late on when Cardiff were trying hard for an equaliser. The score could have been worse but for a Neil Etheridge penalty save.

CARDIFF 0 NEWCASTLE 0

The first home game of the Premier League season against Newcastle United, and over 30,000 in the Cardiff City Stadium! There were a few changes from the team which started against Bournemouth a week earlier - most notably in midfield where new boys Harry Arter and Victor Camarasa started alongside Joe Ralls. This allowed Sol Bamba to return to his better position of central defence with Bruno Ecuele Manga moving out to right back to replace Lee Peltier. Kenneth Zohore returned from a minor injury to start at striker.

As I suggested at the beginning of this blog, this was an encouraging performance by the team. Its a bit difficult to judge in some ways, as we can't be sure yet how good (or bad) Newcastle are going to be. But the midfield 3 in particular were very good, and Josh Murphy also made a good first home competitive appearance out wide (in fact, he was awarded Man of the Match by the Skysports team). However, we lacked the cutting edge to score a goal, a fact which almost cost us all 3 points at the end of the game. 

Neil Etheridge saves from Newcastle's Brazilian forward Kenedy

In the 6th minute of stoppage time, a cross from the Newcastle left struck the arm of Sean Morrison and gifted Newcastle a penalty and the chance to win the game. Thankfully, Kenedy took a very weak penalty, which Neil Etheridge was able to save easily and thus gain the team their first Premier League point. Two penalty saves in two matches is making Etheridge something of a hero, both for Bluebirds fans and fans in his native Phillipines, as he has become the first Philippines player to make it to the Premier League.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

My first impression of seeing the team first hand is that we are not quite as bad as a lot of the pundits seem to make out. Some people are criticising the ability of Kenneth Zohore up front, but I thought he had a decent game on Saturday despite being badly off target with his only clear cut chance. He fought well for the ball and was difficult to get off it when in possession, an ability which will stand him in good stead as the season progresses. 

The midfield 3 were very good, with Harry Arter's hard work and effort particularly impressive. He definitely look like a "Warnock" type player who may yet achieve cult status at the Cardiff City Stadium (even if he was lucky not to get a red card for one nasty tackle!). The team kept a clean sheet, which was also encouraging. Also, we had 51% of the possession during the game - I can't remember the last time we had more possession than our opponents!

In general, my feelings are that if we play up to the standards shown on Saturday then we have a good chance of maintaining our Premier League status this season. We have to hope for a good result away from home at Huddersfield this week, as our next 3 games are against Arsenal, Manchester City and Chelsea! But this is what the Premier League is all about and why it is so fantastic that we are a part of it.

6pm. 20th August 2018.