Cardiff City continue to stumble in their attempt to climb the table and it comes down to their weakness at the back. It does’t get any easier with Brighton next up.
Neil Warnock had an instant impact on Cardiff City’s form but three losses in four games has seen his side return to the relegation zone.
Cardiff are currently attempting to negotiate their way through a tough run of fixtures, they have already met Newcastle United away, Huddersfield Town at home home and Aston Villa away in their last three and it gets no easier, hosting Brighton on the weekend.
The Bluebirds are desperate to get themselves out of trouble but their clear weakness at the back is making it impossible for them to get the better of their opposition.
Cardiff City’s Sean Morrison fouls Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish for a penalty
Cardiff have failed to keep a clean sheet in 17 competitive fixtures and that simply isn’t good enough, especially if they want to finish in the top half this season.
When Neil Warnock took the job as Bluebirds’ boss, it’s fair to say everyone expected the defence to tighten up almost immediately, but even he hasn’t been able to stop the rot in that area of their game.
Sol Bamba has helped steady the ship, there’s no doubt about that but Sean Morrison and Joe Bennett’s unimpressive displays on the weekend showed why there’s a lot more to do.
Cardiff City’s Lee Peltier is sent off
Warnock has said he is limited until January when he hopes to bring in more bodies, but what of Matthew Connolly and Bruno Ecuele-Manga? Both suffered poor starts to the season but their performances last term were often exemplary.
Something clearly has to change in the back four and bringing in a reliable player like Connolly may be what’s needed to end the run of continuous concessions.
Cardiff host Brighton on the weekend and the second placed side won’t take any prisoners as they continue to bid for a promotion which has been agonizingly away from their grasp for years.
Aston Villa’s Jordan Ayew in action with with Cardiff City’s Sol Bamba
With players like Glenn Murray and Anthony Knockaert on the pitch, Cardiff can make no mistake and they must find a way to keep the in-form Seagulls out of their net.
There were too many moments of standing still and ball-watching in the Bluebirds’ 3-1 loss to Aston Villa on the weekend, and similar mistakes will result in a disappointing afternoon for Neil Warnock’s men on Saturday.
Cardiff have to find a way to be resilient in the back or they will find themselves lurking around the relegation zone for much longer than they want to be.
Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock
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