3 URGENT ISSUES THAT NEED ADDRESSING AT CARDIFF CITY?By Adam Simeoni Having seemingly been cruising towards challenging Wolves for the title, Cardiff City surrendered second-place in the Sky Bet Championship as a resurgent Fulham side stormed past the Bluebirds with a comfortable win over Reading.
Manager Neil Warnock must rally his side in the final weeks of the campaign as, with a game to spare over their West London rivals, their fate remains firmly in their own hands.
With the race set to go down to the wire, the experienced boss will be focussing his attentions solely upon one game at a time but with promotion on a knife edge, he must address these issues immediately to ensure his side get over the line…
Bouncing BackCardiff pulled clear of Villa in the race for second place with consummate ease, but Steve Bruce’s side got one back on their rivals on Tuesday night through Jack Grealish’s phenomenal volley from the edge of the box.
That late blow denied Cardiff the point that would have kept them level with Fulham and defeat will have knocked the wind out of his squad on the long journey back to South Wales.
Warnock will have had time to digest and reflect on defeat, summoning all of his experiences within the game to lift his squad from the pit of despair.
He better hope they have mentally recovered by the time they travel across the country to Norwich on Saturday afternoon.
Aron GunnarssonThe influential Icelandic midfielder has been essential to Cardiff’s success this term but is currently on course to leave the club with his contract set to expire in the summer.
If the Bluebirds go up they will need his presence in the middle of the park and Warnock simply must find times for last ditch talks to convince the midfielder that his future lies in South Wales should promotion be secured.
Gunnarsson won’t have any problems finding a new club anywhere in Europe but may be tempted by a year with his current side in the Premier League.
If his mind is set, then Warnock needs to begin to give serious consideration as to who his replacement will be.
Who starts up top against Norwich?An imminent problem for Warnock, Cardiff are goal-less in their last two encounters, with Kenneth Zohore failing to find the net in tough defeats at home to Wolves and away to Villa.
Is it time to introduce Bolton Wanderers top goalscorer and January signing Gary Madine to the starting eleven?
The big striker is a nightmare in the air and would cause havoc against a shaky Canaries’ back line, so perhaps it is time to replace pace with power in what has emerged as a must-win game.
Or maybe Warnock goes bold and plays the both of them? Madine’s strength and finishing coupled with Zohore pace and ability to get in behind the defence would cause nightmares for the Norwich defence.
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