A 2-2 draw at Craven Cottage yesterday against a Fulham team that had taken seven points from their first three matches was better than I was expecting for a couple of reasons. Firstly, my pre match prediction was that we would be beaten and secondly, I expected us not be able to answer the one or two goals the home side would score with any of our own.
So, perhaps more than in any of our games so far, it’s possible to feel that we can do well this season while playing a more watchable brand of football and yet there have to still be plenty of reasons why such a statement has to be qualified with the word “but”.
For now, the truth has to be that, unless you are a supporter of I would say Huddersfield or Blackburn, City fans find themselves in a position shared by everyone else in this league at the moment. That is, that they can point to some periods in their league matches so far where it’s possible to believe that their side can fulfill the more realistic optimistic pre season thoughts you had, but these have to be tempered by the knowledge that there have also been times where it looks like the reality will turn out to be worse than many of us were expecting.
Obviously, that balance between periods of promise and concern will vary from club to club and will have a lot to do with what was considered to be realistic before the league campaign started a fortnight ago – Newcastle and Rotherham fans for example would view, say, a home draw with a team like Ipswich in a completely different manner.
So, four games in, where does that balance between grounds for optimism and concern lie for this Cardiff City fan? Well, as with all of the other clubs, the answer has to be expressed against the backdrop of what was your level of expectation before a ball was kicked and, for myself, it was that we would end up somewhere in positions seven to twelve, just like we did in the last two seasons.
Overall, based on what I’ve seen so far, there are more reasons to feel that my prediction as to how our season will pan out feels like an over optimistic one than there for thinking I was being too pessimistic.
A draw at Birmingham on the opening day was a good enough start, but the results and, more particularly, the performances in our couple of our home matches more than cancelled that out – we were awful against QPR and although Blackburn was better (it could hardly have been worse!), it was a little like our last home win before that where we scraped a 2-1 victory after receiving considerable help along the way from opponents who were at the bottom of the league.
Fulham was a step back in the right direction, but, even then, there was little or nothing in what we did in the first half to suggest that my predicted outcome was going to be wrong.
Yesterday saw what may well have been the most extreme example yet of the home truth which says that who wins the battle for possession does not always win the battle for the points as Burnley triumphed 2-0 against Liverpool despite only having the ball for nineteen per cent of the game. So, Fulham having around two thirds of the possession in that opening forty five minutes does not mean in itself that they were controlling the match, but the fact that, for the third successive match, we went in at the interval with the match stats saying we had not had a single effort on target does tend to tell it’s own story.
In his post match press conference Paul Trollope spoke of his team being too passive in and out of possession during that first half. Certainly, the passive in possession part strikes me as a criticism that can be applied to much of our season so far (in fact, I’d say it could be applied to a lot of the two previous seasons as well). On that score, it’s very interesting to reflect that it’s a player that I daresay many, including myself, had down as a candidate to be loaned out, again, to a lower division club who is one of the prime movers behind attempts to try and do something about that passivity in possession.
Going back to that end of season game with Bolton again for a moment, it was Kadeem Harris who came off the substitute’s bench to earn the very late penalty which gave us the chance to believe we could win our way into the top six for a week longer and in our last two matches his introduction around the hour mark has brought about a positive transformation of sorts for the team.
Now it needs to be said that the fact that the stats said we had not had an effort on target when Kadeem came on against Blackburn is more than a little misleading, because we were 2-0 up at the time and had also hit a post, but Harris brought a directness and energy to the team which went some way at least towards explaining why the stats showed we’d had three more on target efforts in the last third of the match than we’d managed in the first two thirds of it.
When Joe Ralls scores, the goals tend to be spectacular ones and he managed to equal his tally for the whole of last season with this effort from twenty five yards yesterday. Even if he is going to be occupying a deeper role this year, someone with his shooting ability should be aiming to score at least five a season.*
Similarly, while it can hardly be said that the goal we scored within a minute of his introduction yesterday was a direct result of Harris being on the pitch, we had scored again and also hit the woodwork within ten minutes of him coming on – that can hardly be just a coincidence.
Yes, you’d probably want someone better equipped to cope with the defensive side of the right wing back role as you come under pressure after he’s helped earn you a lead (just as on Wednesday, he was yellow carded), but our best attacking periods of play this season so far are coming when one or both of Kadeem Harris and Declan John have been performing on the flanks in a manner which suggests that the introduction of a system using wing backs could lead to an improvement in our play when compared to recent seasons.
It must be a relief to all at the club that we finally have some goals by City players to celebrate. I’m pretty sure there were few who thought the honour of scoring the first of them would fall to Joe Ralls (and with his right foot don’t you know!), but the midfield man left you wondering why he doesn’t score more often when he is capable of striking the ball as well as he did from twenty five yards out yesterday.
As for the second goal four minutes later, well, typically, I was bemoaning the fact Anthony Pilkington had only one goal (in the meaningless final game of last season against Birmingham) to his name since the end of February on a messageboard only hours before yesterday’s match. This was done to give further evidence to my claim that we must be one of the weakest teams in the division when it comes to strength and depth in the striking department.
Now, in my defence, I would say that the cut in from the right by Pilkington and subsequent left foot shot into the corner after beating a couple of opponents was the sort of goal which has lit up his career from time to time, but it was the goal of a winger (the position that Pilks has played in for about ninety five per cent of his career) rather than a striker.
When Peter Whittingham struck the angle of post and crossbar from a free kick with another effort from twenty five yards, City almost had a third marvelous goal to add to the two they’d already got. However, wonderful though they are to watch, the truth is that you are not going to score such goals as Ralls and Pilkington did and Whittingham nearly did every week. No, “typical” goals for most clubs are a combination of headers or shots following free kicks or corners or predatory efforts from open play from a range of about ten yards or closer and the evidence so far strongly suggests that we are not going to get enough of those sort of goals from the current first team squad.
I’m not saying anything ground breaking or earth shattering there. Paul Trollope confirmed after the match that the search for new players goes on – understandably, he wouldn’t be drawn when asked specifically about the striking department. However, with us back to a front pairing of Pilkington and Lex Immers where the pair of them are being asked to play in a position which most would concede is not their best, then, surely, it must follow that the main priority is someone up front capable of the sort movement, pace and imagination Sone Aluko (someone I would have liked us to go after this summer) showed when he managed the rare feat of embarrassing Matt Connolly defensively when setting up the game’s first goal for Ryan Sessegnon (who, at just sixteen, was born in this century for God’s sake!).
All of this carrying on about our need for a striker after every game really goes to the heart of something I say on here every year and never ever adhere to myself – there isn’t really much point in trying to make reasoned judgements as to how your team will do in any given season until after the summer transfer window closes, it’s only then you’ll know who will be seeing you through at least the first half of the campaign.
Aron Gunnarsson and Anthony Pilkington celebrate after the latter managed to come up with a goal that, was arguably, better than Ralls’ to put us 2-1 ahead. Last season we won 3-1 at Wolves and all three of our goals were tremendous efforts from long distance, but such matches only come along perhaps two or three times a year and any team that over relies on such efforts for their goals are going to face a long and very tough next nine months.*
With a clampdown on emergency loans this time around, that applies even more this season – sides are not going to be able to add to their squad with a temporary signing or two after a couple of defeats on the trot in September any more.
Our Head Coach was more forthcoming when he was asked about transfer targets at various times during last week, with the need for a replacement goalkeeper for Simon Moore and a wing back/full back with the versatility to be able to play on either side of the pitch being identified, so, you have to think that Paul Trollope is looking for at least three additions to his squad before the window closes.
I think it goes without saying that millions upon millions of pounds will be spent in the Championship in the next ten days or so as the race to put together the squad each manger wants before the window closes hots up, but the evidence of the last twenty three months or so strongly suggests that not very much of that money will be spent at Cardiff unless there are significant departures from the club as well.
Moore’s departure to Sheffield United for a reported fee of £500,000 and the announcement on Friday that Tom Adeyemi has been loaned out to Rotherham for the season helps a little in that direction, but it’s been clear for a while that there are three big earners at the club that they are very keen to get off the books.
The trouble is that everyone knows that Messrs LeFondre, Macheda and Dikagcoi are available and so there’s, almost certainly, a game of brinkmanship going on whereby any club interested in one of these players is holding fire in the, probably correct, belief that CIty will be forced to eventually accept the sort of offer they’d turn down if it were made today.
This situation is nothing new for City. After all, Russell Slade was under orders to move various high earners out right from day one – the results were mixed where our former manager was concerned and the strong likelihood is that City are/were making a contribution towards the wages of some of the players who left during our previous manager’s time at the club..
Therefore, it’ll probably not be as straightforward as all of the money from the wages of the three players we’re trying to sell being made available to Paul Trollope for new signings if and when they leave. Even if CIty were to get deals whereby they wouldn’t be contributing to the wages of the departed players, there’s also the matter of the contracts of current players that will expire next summer to consider – for example, would putting together an attractive enough package to persuade, say, Anthony Pilkington to commit to a new deal take precedence over that new wing back I mentioned earlier?
Under circumstances like this, there has to be a real possibility that Fabio and Scott Malone will not be the only members of last year’s first team squad to be sold during this window.
Although Trollope moved to quash rumours that Aron Gunnarsson will be leaving soon, would the club really turn down an offer of, say, £2 million for him if it came? Similarly, I’m sure it will not have passed unnoticed that Craig Noone has not played any part in our last two games and that Bruno Manga (left out of the starting line up) yesterday has an agent who has made it clear that he is unlikely to extend his stay at Cardiff beyond the length of his current contract, which has a little over ten months left to run.
Going back to predictions, I’d be willing to make mine for the season a bit more optimistic than my current one is if we retained the current squad with a quality striker added to it, but I believe that’s probably an impossible scenario because it will probably boil down to there needing to be a current first team squad member leaving to facilitate the arrival of someone good enough to make a telling difference to us up front. Recently, the last few days of transfer windows have been quite boring from a Cardiff perspective, but I don’t think that will be the case this time – late August will, hopefully, see the sort of transfer activity which will lead to a bit more of a feelgood factor around the place.
*pictures courtesy of http://www.walesonline.co.uk/
Being a Ninian Stand season ticket holder but living in London, I was looking forward to the novelty of setting off for a Saturday afternoon game after mid-day instead of at the crack of dawn – but there was nothing novel about our performance for most of the first half yesterday : yet again, as against QPR and Blackburn, it was negative possession-possession play no matter which part of the field we were in, with the ball passed across or back a.s.a.p. – Fulham also were in the possession-possession game but the key difference is that they were ALWAYS seeking to go forward – their players were LOOKING forward for players to pass to, or gaps to pass into for players to run on to. So it was interesting to read that Paul Trollope said after the game that we were “too passive” in our possession at all costs game – well spotted! Now let’s hope he does something to stop that happening in future – is it OK to fine players for crap play?
And, as against Blackburn, it was a delight to see Kadeem Harris come on and do again what he did then : decide he knew where the other team’s goal was and so set off at speed with the ball towards it.
For much of yesterday I wasn’t sure whether our problem was that we don’t have creative attacking midfielders who make chances for our strikers, or that we don’t have any strikers so there was no point in midfielders creating chances for strikers who didn’t exist. I remember Roy Keane, in his brief Managerial career, referring to Michael Chopra’s absolute value as “a fox in the box” – unfortunately nowadays if we’ve got any foxes they don’t seem to know where the box is ..
The last time I posted a response here I wondered what had happened to Rhys Healey and Tommy O’Sullivan but no-one seemed to know .. perhaps they might be able to bring a bit of Kadeem Harris type energetic commitment to our first team squad?
An obvious question in regard to yesterday’s game is : Why didn’t Cardiff play in the first half like they did in the second? More fundamentally, do we have a system to which we hope players can adapt; or do we adapt a system which makes best use of the players available? I’m not sure which is in place at the moment, but it’s pretty obvious that our strike force (especially Pilkington, despite his excellent goal) are not really playing in their best position, a point which Paul makes with his accustomed insight. Also, why did it take a half-time discussion, involving players and management, to realise that quicker passing and more forward momentum was required? Wasn’t this obvious even before the team took to the field? And lack of pace is still desperately required, as for any team claiming to have counter-attacking pretensions. Also, is the centre-forward we have signed going to be utilised? These are among the issues which I hope can be sorted out very soon.
Finally, congratulations to Mike Dean for the penalties he awarded yesterday. At long last something to penalise wrestling in the box seems to be coming. It has become a footballing disgrace, but to my amazement, the commentator on Cardiff’s game yesterday said there were “two dubious penalties” in the Stoke – Man City game. To my mind, they were both undeniable penalties, and I hope everyone in football takes the lesson to heart.
Thanks Paul , your point about how more penatrive we are with John and Harris surely proves the point of how we will become a better side , along with a new poacher striker and a midfelder with authority .
So let’s sell Gunnerson , and spend good money on bringing Ledley home ,and make him captain .
As a “shitorian” (which is what I was once called) I’m not disturbed or distracted to see typos. What does bother me is when I write something which is the exact opposite of what I mean to say. In my contribution above I wrote that Cardiff’s “lack of pace is still desperately required”. Stupid of me — I meant to call for greater pace, not less. Apologies.
As usual, thanks for your replies – just some quick thoughts of mine on some of the points made.
Graham, I thought we played pretty well in the second half on Saturday and a ninety minute performance along those lines would greatly encourage me. It seems like there were some home truths said at half time and, right from the opening minutes after the break there was a new resolve and belief in the team. The obvious question to arise from this though is why do the players only play to a level which makes top six targets look less pie in the sky after having the riot act read to them? As I said in the piece, the stats which say we didn’t have any shot on target in the first half against Blackburn are a bit misleading, but, even so, it’s shocking to think that an opposing goalkeeper has not had to save a goalbound shot or header in the first sixty minutes of any of our last three matches – I can only think of Zohore’s effort from an impossible angle that was never going to beat the keeper in the Bristol Rovers game as well.
As for “fox ion the box” type players, I have heard it said that there’s no place for them any more in a modern game where strikers are expected to defend from the front and have more of an all round game, but teams are prepared to carry “luxury” players in a number ten role who are, largely, spared defensive duties because of what they can offer the side in an attacking sense – it seems illogical if this line of thinking doesn’t include strikers whose speciality is putting the ball in the back of the net.
Russell, judging by what was reported last summer, I think there is an interest in bringing Joe Ledley back at the club and I think it would be a great move for us to make for all sorts of reasons, but I notice he started for Palace on the weekend and, with them already having sold Jedinak, I just don’t see it happening for a year or two yet.
AMO, I’ve already touched on some of the issues you raise – the slow starts we made to matches was a concern of mine for all of the time Russell Slade was here and I see no sigh that things have changed under Paul Trollope. Regarding Gounongbe, I saw that he was being criticised on the messageboards after Saturday’s match, but, after a decent display when he came on against Blackburn, I couldn’t see much that he did wrong at Fulham when he got his chance either – with us trying to hang on to our lead at the time, he was given something of an impossible task, but was able to do well enough to allow the team to get ten or fifteen yards further up the pitch on a couple of occasions.
Finally, I agree with you completely about those penalties Mike Dean gave – my main disappointment on the refereeing front of the weekend was that so few of his colleagues were prepared to follow his example.
Sorry Graham, I didn’t say anything about Tommy O’Sullivan and Rhys Healey – they’ll probably both be playing in this afternoon’s Academy match, but I honestly can’t see a first team future for either of them at Cardiff now.
Rhys Healey? Tommy O’Sullivan?
Dear Paul and AMO…
How I wish I could join you as founder members of the Mike Dean Appreciation Society.
Alas I cannot.
I – like that otherwise decent placid reasonable human being, Chris Hughton – can never forgive him for the most disgraceful overturning of a yellow card given Dale Stephens in the crunch match at The Riverside at the end of last season.
Middlesbrough players surrounded him, and Gaston Ramirez tried to snatch the card from his hand to get it replaced by a red. On top of that, Karanka was screaming at the Fourth Official demanding a red.
Ramirez, who had been goading Stephens throughout the game, then shows his cut lower leg, which resulted from both players trying to clip the other player’s leg in an off the ground challenge, and Stephens being the “successful” one in the endeavour, injuring his opponent…however it was a cut that would never have resulted had Ramirz used proper shinguards.
A clear yellow card…and maybe a red. A definite ORANGE.
But Dean – rightly in my view, in the absence of an orange card – gave a yellow…seeing it was clear that both players wanted to “mix it” in that incident. And that should have been that.
Then alas, Dean shamefully allowed himself to be influenced by the baying crowd, and the histrionics of the Boro players and manager (on the Fourth Official) , and – crucially – by the claret.
Frankly this is creating a precedent.
A yellow card is a yellow card…the fact there is blood, should not be a factor.
Thus Mr Dean is no hero to me. Injury hit Brighton – also minus key man Dunk who was suspended – were heroically the better team on the day, and would probably have won without that dismissal.
The very talented Stephens was, in my book an IDIOT, for responding to Ramirez’s constant attempts to wind him up.
The less talented Mike Dean was much worse.
He was – I submit – a true COWARD.
DW.
It occurs to me that I meant to say a couple of unrelated things yesterday, but forgot. So here is my chance to put things right, and say what I wanted to say.
1. Joe Mason, and his goal for Wales at the weekend.
When did he ever score a goal like that for City…?
I put it down to the malaise that Sir Vincent so accurately diagnosed, viz., an unwillingness (strike that…more a RELUCTANCE) to shoot from distance that has characterised much of the time since the Malaysian takeover.
How right Mr Tan was.
2. And now with the two goals at Fulham, are we finally seeing a welcome change in footballing philosophy? Let us hope so.
The poor standard of goalkeeping is the one compelling reason we should shoot. So many balls are spilled…or indeed “thrown in” …as with England’s Head And Shoulders.
Keepers are amazingly bad these days…given that they are almost to a man, very good athletes who doubtless excelled in the gym at school.
2. I recently called Mourinho “damaged goods”. Watch him ram the words back down my throat. As an ABMU* man to my core, it grieves me to say it, but Old Trafford will see the Premier League title paraded there at the end of this season.
I will be delighted to see Bobby Charlton’s face, mind you !!
Not to mention that of Lord Fergie of Govan, too…when the startlingly gifted Paul Pogba is named Footballer of the Year !!
3. Simon Moore, a most supple/elastic mover of a keeper, has been despatched for half a million or so. Should we have got double that amount? Possibly.
But he did himself no good by going for that worldy against Bristol Rovers with the wrong hand…and not first taking a stride to the left.
4. Talking of Rovers…did you see that free kick that did for them the other day? As usual we have the absurd situation of a keeper relying on his wall…which alas is not of Masai warriors, but normal six footers and slightly under.
So what does he do?
He follows the herd…and stands 80% of the way across his goal. Thus prompting someone to try an “up, over and down” with such a inviting gap.
And of course, the keeper ends up clawing at thin air.
Had he stood in the centre of his goal, he would probably have saved it.
It is all a puzzle to me. It happens ten times every weekend.
Do you think this is all a bizarre DREAM, Paul? I pinch myself…but it STILL happens.
5. Re my comments on Mike Dean in my previous post.
I need to add this…
If ever a decision ruined a whole season, it was that one. Brighton had the Boro on the ropes until that moment, and were the team getting the £120m Premier League loot. But dejection set in at that shameful volte face from Dean.
At the final whistle the home fans invaded the pitch…like it was VE Day.
Then later had the cheek to abuse Burnley’s wonderfully intelligent and articulate Joey Barton** when he made his absolutely accurate observations on the trophy for presentation being at the wrong ground.
There are such wonderful people on Teesside. But why is it that their club gets such big things wrong?
Go right back to the reason why they were deducted three points and relegated. And before that, the building of The Riverside Stadium itself.
Do you know that despite the club helping to choreograph SAVE OUR STEEL events at the stadium before games (and helping organise that lighting up of smartphones at the Old Trafford game), they built their new stadium not with Redcar steel, but with (wait for it…)
GERMAN steel.
“Pass the sick bag, Alice”.
Then, about 4 years ago, they were offering a free pint of lager*** with certain tickets. Sure, it was adults only…but hey, there are drink driving laws.
* Anyone But Manchester United.
** yes, I know…an idiot to the power of ten, in the past.
*** or was it half price? Maybe. No time to google.
DW.
I don’t know if you saw it Graham, but I added a sentence or two about the two of them at the end of my first reply to you after I had forgotten to answer your question earlier.
Also, I had a fair bit to say about Rhys Healey in my piece on the Development team game yesterday.
I should say Dai that my appreciation of Mike Dean was solely down him giving those two penalties on the weekend . He’s not one of my favourite refs normally, but I wish a few more of them would act as bravely as he did at Stoke.
1. I’ve often wished Joe Mason was Welsh Dai! It was a fine goal on Saturday from a player that I’ve always had a lot of faith in and, unlike most City fans it seems, I was sad to see him leave, but the consolation was that we got a good price for him – he scored some good goals for City (Bristol City, Burnley, Reading and Brighton in his first season spring to mind), but we miss him more for the tap ins he’d get inside the six yard box – maybe Gounongbe will prove me wrong eventually, but we don’t see to have anyone in contention for a first team place currently with the instinct to be in the right place at the right time when there’s a ball bobbing about in front of the opposition goal.
2. I think the way the modern day ball moves about can make goalkeepers look poorer than they actually are at times.
3. Although I believe they’ll be genuine contenders this season, I’m not as convinced as you about Man United or Pogba yet – I was more impressed by Man City at Stoke.
4. I seem to remember we only paid about £150k for Simon Moore and I’m not sure he was more than three times better when he left us than he was when he arrived, so I thought we did well to half a million pounds for him.
5. I know what you mean about Middlesbrough, I was at a game when they played Brighton and have not seen any highlights of the match, but I didn’t want them to go up because I thought they were quite a negative team and also because I think they may well have done a Bournemouth as far as the FFP regulations are concerned.
You make some fine points there Paul.
I especially liked point #2 on the modern football and its “unpredictable flight”.
I am sure that I am guilty of not factoring-it-in enough.
But having said that, thank you Paul for thus allowing me to jump on to a favourite hobbyhorse of mine, viz. on how non-Ronaldo/Messi “ordinary mortals” should actually go through the simple mechanics of shooting in the first place.
Mr Trollope should insist that for any shots outside of the penalty area, the players must NEVER try to pick their spot…but always aim at the whites of the eyes of the goalkeeper.
Why?
Well, because their natural imperfection at threading a ball through the eye of a needle, coupled with the actual football’s bizarrely wilful determination to do its own thing, thus ensure that there is then a decent likelihood of the ball nestling in the top corner of the net. At worst, it might go as straight as an arrow into the keeper, and possibly straight out again… to present a possible tap-in!!
But AIM for that top corner… (Ha !!)…and the ball might hit the corner flag.
And please…trust me Paul…I say none of this for jest.
It is what I fundamentally believe: not just in my bones, but in my very lifeblood.
DW.
Forgot to say that Bobby Zamora was one who used to make the mistake of always aiming for the top corner.
And thus it was, that his fans came up with the most priceless football song of them all (to the tune of that old Dean Martin favourite, “That’s Amore”)
Too lazy to google it, but I recall the opening bit…
…
Get ready…it is a beauty…
…
WHEN THE BALL HITS THE HEAD
OF A BLOKE IN ROW ZED…
THAT’S ZAMORA…
…
Dai.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/west-ham/10692143/Top-10-funniest-football-chants.html
To be fair to Zamora, Brighton fans have a different version
http://www.northstandchat.com/showthread.php?324939-The-Zamora-Song
Thanks for that, Paul.
How that Rio song beat the Zamora song…well…let’s just say it is a mystery to me.
Changing the subject…I have just heard on the wireless that the Spurs manager says that Wilfried Zaha is the new Ronaldo.
Disappointing loan spell at CCS under the Grinning Kamikaze aside, I am inclined to believe that such a claim is far from total hyperbole.
Except he cannot head the ball…and needs to be played not out on the wing, but as a deep-lying centre forward and given carte blanche to cover every inch of the opponent’s half.
Forgot to add Paul, that the Zamora song takes it by a short head from the gratuitously offensive (but regrettably, still very funny) “In the Liverpool slums” song.
Feeling happy this morning seeing the cheat Slaven Bilic looking miserable on TV…but mixed emotions as The Hammers should really be the “second team” for all of us…given the massive amount of taxpayers money that has gone into that club.
And pretty soon the Pornographer and his mate will each walk away with well over a hundred million profit, when the sale of the club is finalised.
And “UK State” money will have been used to make the asset value of that club seem so much more solid than it should have been…if only we had not given the peppercorn lease of that stadium to them.
I see they have spent just £27m “in the window”. Of the circa £130 TV money just granted them.
I wonder why?
Seems to me that they and their media darling of a manager, are well suited.
Karen Brady though seems a decent sort…but then, maybe I am easily taken in.
DW.