Hi guys - those of you who want to chat anyway....... Back home now after a bore fest atthe CCS but great win for you lot - told you 4th spot was on the cards this morning if other results went your way. Bet you don't win the next two though.
Hi OS, firstly it was never in doubt we would be back in the top 6, in fact come next Saturday we will be above you. Did Millwall,park the bus or did you have another off day?
RR - no wonder you're on fire at present pal, you must have got a bit burnt against Leeds last weekend....... Seriously though, you beat what was in front of you yesterday and you can't do better than that. We beat them up there by the same scoreline a few weeks back and to be honest they were bloody hopeless. Fulham will be a different type of proposition, and.................well as for us, we're a different class again.
Hello Supcon. To answer your question honestly (and you know I'm always honest ) we failed to break down a team set up by Harris to frustrate and defend the point they came with. That was our fault and lessons need to be learned. The same thing happened when we played Derby at home a few weeks back. They're a much better side than Millwall but came with the same plan and got a point - poor games from us both times. Some will call them "off days" but yes, we ultimately failed again to take the 3 points at home against teams like that.
Sparkey - would you want to watch Millwall every week? I would put Burton in this bracket as well. I know football is a results based business, but both side were almost "anti football" when they came to Ashton Gate. Their supporters will say they got a point, but ....... the games were soooo bl**dy boring
Did you only draw against Derby? We smashed them, by by the laws of some, we are going to do you 20 nil. Truthfully I expect that fat bloke to play, we will chant about how he’s a waste of money, he’s **** and all the rest and then he will score the winner. I have learnt, never to brag about success as the world hurt’s when you return to the ground. So to play safe I think the team that score the most will win.
Not my sort of stuff smh. Unfortunately you're going to get that sort of style amongst the other footballing sides in this division because that's usually the only way they can accumulate points. The job of other sides, particularly when at home is to devise a way to break them down - we couldn't yesterday. That leads you on to think about the table come May - what a difference those 2 lost points could make eh?
So, Millwall achieved the same v you as they did against us then - as did Burton v us. We lost to Leeds, but results for both teams since then have shown that to be a one-off freak blip. I can’t remember how we did against Derby it was that long ago......you will have to remind me
I think we will get a point at Fulham. As for u guys if you can only draw with Derby I'd bring an abacus to Ashton Gate to keep count of the goals we score against you. Seriously depends how you approach the game , if you come to play I think we'll snatch it by the odd goal, if you come to frustrate us , as ROD says , the fat bloke will probably Win it with a wonder goal. We are both on form at present, but if I had to pick a score 2-1 to City , the Bristol variety . I assume Cardiff will play in the away kit , blue , oh hang on a minute is that There home kit these days.
I think we could beat Fulham but I am concerned about our medical treatment room filling up, after all these desperate inferior sides kick our players - see my other thread re: injuries.
Warnock is too savvy to allow a game of football to occur at Ashton Gate - Cardiff will likely be niggly, defensive & set up to counter attack. There's nothing wrong with that if it ends up in a positive result mind.
Agree Nick, that's how I read it too , so it's down to us to get a goal & open them up, otherwise it could be one of those frustrating niggly games I imagine Neil will start the mind games soon too.
That's the problem though isn't it. Some stat based posters (no names here ) might calculate that but it doesn't work like that. On the same basis we stuffed Leeds 3-1 and then you lost to them 0-3 at home............so we should beat you over there 20 nil. Funny old game.
Who's to say? Those kinds of predictions can make fools of us all. What I am willing to say is I think it's unlikely that Warnock will look at the fixture and think 'we can camp in their half and pass around/through them' & much more likely think 'we can out-battle them and use the pace of Mendez-Laing and Hoilett to counter'. A quick Google suggests that Cardiff have an average possession of 45.9% and pass completion of 62.3% (for comparison, ours is 52.9% & 74.9% respectively), whereas average aerial battles won are 26.8 to 21.4 in Cardiff's favour. Statistics only paint so much of a picture, but it is indicative of the two teams' playing styles. Ultimately, the one important statistic is 'how many points earned after 46 games' & all others pale into insignificance. There's a good chance that Cardiff can win, but I doubt it'll be achieved having dominated possession. It could be an insight into Warnock's success through pragmatism. A lot of managers will try to dominate games when they ought not too and underestimate the ability of the opposition - similarly, those that are too negative aren't ever likely to accumulate enough points. He's smart enough to balance the two & perhaps thinks that a handful of clear-cut chances are better than dozens of half ones.
Nick - I'm always dubious about statistical info - as you suggest it's the ability to accumulate points that will determine ultimate destinies, not the way their earned. I do get the feeling though that many an opposition fan assumes that the only way Cardiff (Warnock) can accumulate those points is by dour play and brute force. That's already been cited by Wolves, Leeds, Sheff Utd and Villa fans so far this season, all who we've thrashed through competing to our strengths and not theirs - that's the experience that Warnock's managership brings. From someone who's followed us through the highs and lows since we beat Real Madrid in the European Cup (I was only a sprog then honest )there is far and away much more to our game these recent days than that. We have pace now - something we've lacked for years and a team ethic built in that's worth a point a game. I've not seen anything like as much of Bristol City as you lads and wouldn't like to take a stance on Johnson's methods. If they work then that's fine, but it's the ability to adapt to different circumstances that will determine your season overall. So far so good for both of us, and I know there's another game before we meet, but to me it looks like another battle of the touchline coming up next weekend just as much as the players on the park. Team selection, tactics and the nous to change things during the 90 if circumstances change and things aren't going right. Warnock has had the advantage over Johnson up till now and I have to go with more of the same for next weekend. Whatever, it should be a smashing scrap.
I think it's sometimes over-simplifying to say that a win is down to one manager 'outsmarting the other' - otherwise Steve Cotterill out-thought Warnock & Alex Neill embarrassed him. Even Sir Alex lost 6-1 at home to Roberto Mancini, but I think you'd struggle to find people who thought the latter was better. No doubt it'll be one of the most tense derby's in recent times as both sides are riding high, but if we come out on top, it doesn't automatically make LJ better than Warnock. I'm thinking a draw at the minute.
You can pick out individual games as much as you want to compare managers, but you've answered your own point by citing SAF. I'm not saying any one game wont go against the better manager - Steve Cotterill and Alex Neill certainly got the better of Warnock on the day but I've no doubt who'd come out on top in a "best of 5". The game isn't all about the managers but it has a hell of a lot to do with it.
