This is the worst Cardiff City defence in a generation – if

SO ARE WE GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER WORST RECORD IN 125 YEARS UNDER TAN AND HIS YES MEN MANAGEMENT??
Please NO:

Also only 3 Wins in Our last 18 games, Riza has been in total charge since September.





This is the worst Cardiff City defence in a generation – if it's not fixed it will take them down



No Cardiff team has conceded 53 goals after 31 games in the Championship.

Inexperience? Lack of leadership? Players out of position? Unsettled back line? Midfield make-up? Not learning from mistakes?







By Glen Williams

Friday 14th February 2025


The Bluebirds have 15 games left to avoid relegation and it has to start from the back, Riza has been in total charge since the 6th game of the season and has to take a lot of the blame. Purely on numbers, there is a strong argument to suggest this is the worst Cardiff City defence in a generation.

No Bluebirds team has ever conceded more than a half-century of goals after 31 games in the two-decades-long Championship era, but the 7-0 hammering at Elland Road last week saw City raise their bats, with a further two conceded at Fratton Park on Tuesday moving them on to 53 not out with 15 games still to go.

The main management team is Riza, Purse and Shaw.

Only one team, Portsmouth with 55, have conceded more goals this season than Cardiff, an alarming statistic that must be addressed and corrected for this crucial run-in of fixtures which will determine in which division they play their football next season.

Not learning from his mistakes is the melting pot — how often have Cardiff conceded that same goal, again and again, whereby an opposition winger is played in behind the full-back only to square it to a striker to tap home? Inexperience has played its part as well, which Omer Riza alluded to this week. Rinomhota has not played right-back in the Championship before this season, Will Fish has never played in the Championship, nor had Jesper Daland before this term.

This is the potential drawback of reducing the average age of your squad, there are often players learning on the job but it is also a necessary evil if clubs want value pumped into the club and to reap the financial rewards down the line.

There have been heavy, heavy losses which have served to exacerbate that number, too. The 7-0 and 5-0 drubbings by top-two Leeds and Burnley respectively have not helped the goals against column. In both of those games, everything the two teams hit seemed to fly into the back of the net. Conceding four against Hull City and the Boxing Day nightmare at Oxford United, when Cardiff let three go in, were also disappointing outings.

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It has got a lot better under Shaw as well.

It has got a lot better under Shaw as well.

Yes I agree Neil in many games, But Leeds away beyond Shocking and Pompey near the bottom tore us apart and Stoke did for big parts of their game.

Even in the last 3 games conceded 12 goals

Fell apart after McGuinness left…

Fell apart after McGuinness left…

Have you seen where Luton are in the table?

It's nothing to do with losing McGuinness.

It's more to do with the way we kept trying to play out from the back, with players who don't have the passing and movement for it.

I believe Luton will have a run they have a better squad than us they will stay up can’t rely on Luton being our saviour like reading when they had 6 points deducted which saved us that year Riza inexperienced people say we had a run 9 games two of which were fa cup we won away at Watford our only away win all season Riza took over after 6 games this is his decisions not bulet the buck stays with riza

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

We struggle with a decent winger putting balls into our 6 yard box.

Before Christmas it was predominantly in from their right, our left via O'Dowda (who ironically is our best left winger). Now it seems to be both sides.

All of the back 4, in any iteration, are either current position standard or lower.

Goutas is the one who catches the eye the most, but is a statue for alot of our goals. The rest drop clangers. Rino gets good praise as he's a phenomenal athlete, but prone to being beat. LB (for me) is our weakest position, and should have been addressed in Jan.

I said it elsewhere, if we go down, it'll be due to our leaky defence. We've gone from 21st in the league (Bulut era) to 15th in goals scored. We've maintained 21st in the league for goals conceded in both Bulut and Riza leadership.

I'm not confident in either of our goalkeepers who are probably classified as "two starting championship keepers"; I beg to differ.

It has to get sorted, as a priority.

Rhino is getting beat far to easily they are getting in behind him every time, also tends to drift into the middle

Maybe we need to go direct (Warnockball) for the rest of the season.

Stop being a 3rd rate Man City because it clearly is not working.
Start moving the ball far more quickly, getting it to the wide men, who in turn are instructed to pepper balls into the penalty area where Salech is waiting.

Drop the fking laptops and start fighting for survival from minute 1 tomorrow!

The one consistent in our conceding goals is the lack of marking in area? Large percentage of goals conceded are when opposition player is unmarked within penalty area and score unchallenged! Surely when anylise games they can see this yet it as not been addressed ......why??

Stop playing out from the back and putting the defence under instance pressure. The players are not good enough and have no confidence on the ball. Stop passing backwards, sideways and go forward. Players need to move into better positions to receive the ball. BASICS!

Another positive would be for Alnwick to get the ball to the wingers right away.

I'm sick of him pretending he's going to throw it to one, then just standing there with the ball.

We need to hit teams when they are not ready. By the time he distributes it, everyone is back in their positions.

Nothing to do with McGuinness, whilst playing out from the back does not help and gives me the creeps, there more to it.

We have good individuals in our back line, and in front of them, some good experience in there to. But there is still ball watching and lack of awareness big time, gaping gaps with opponents in space and unmarked, untracked runners, half hearted challenges in the air from set plays, Leeds were excellent were always going to test the backline, Im sorry seven is unacceptable, and at times against Pompey and Stoke it was happening again. Its the training pitch, and the dressing room, its the lack of leadership, orginization, rigidity, consistency and talking in that backline. Shaw appeared to make a difference at first, Im not so sure, but these are decent players and this should not be happening. Particularly when we score we almost always look vulnarable. Game management, psychology, training, not Mark McGuinness!

Last edited by tangledupinblue on Fri Feb 14, 2025 1:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

Nobody is saying swap riza for purse most will have to accept riza but a lot me included,
if a better quality manager was to be on offer for us tomorrow i would bite there hand off rather than hoping riza comes good,
and for all those pointing fingers at those who are unhappy with riza,
we will be pointing the finger at you if we go down.

The one consistent in our conceding goals is the lack of marking in area? Large percentage of goals conceded are when opposition player is unmarked within penalty area and score unchallenged! Surely when anylise games they can see this yet it as not been addressed ......why??

Allan 100% correct WIDE OPEN DEFENCE

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Players being told to play out from the back is not working, i totally agree with you but is that not down to the manager ??

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

Nobody is saying swap riza for purse most will have to accept riza but a lot me included,
if a better quality manager was to be on offer for us tomorrow i would bite there hand off rather than hoping riza comes good,
and for all those pointing fingers at those who are unhappy with riza,
we will be pointing the finger at you if we go down.

Spot on. I have a bad feeling about the remainder of the season. I believe Riza will take us down and it'll be devastating for the club.

However, Tan has been flirting with relegation for several seasons now and I feel his luck, gambling with no out and out striker for so long, with the odd cheap managerial appointment, will finally come home to roost.

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

Nobody is saying swap riza for purse most will have to accept riza but a lot me included,
if a better quality manager was to be on offer for us tomorrow i would bite there hand off rather than hoping riza comes good,
and for all those pointing fingers at those who are unhappy with riza,
we will be pointing the finger at you if we go down.

Spot on. I have a bad feeling about the remainder of the season. I believe Riza will take us down and it'll be devastating for the club.

However, Tan has been flirting with relegation for several seasons now and I feel his luck, gambling with no out and out striker for so long, with the odd cheap managerial appointment, will finally come home to roost.

This is not Riza fault, never has been his fault, this is down to the 3 lunatics running/killing our club. When he was given the interim managers job with all that glut of experienced managers available, it quickly become obvious that the cheapest option (Riza) would be given the job. Before the announcement i went on record to state if Riza gets the job we will be relegated, at this moment nothing has changed my mind. That said, if/when we get to 50 points i'll be on here to hold my hands up and say i was wrong.

SO ARE WE GOING TO HAVE ANOTHER WORST RECORD IN 125 YEARS UNDER TAN AND HIS YES MEN MANAGEMENT??
Please NO:

Also only 3 Wins in Our last 18 games, Riza has been in total charge since September.





This is the worst Cardiff City defence in a generation – if it's not fixed it will take them down



No Cardiff team has conceded 53 goals after 31 games in the Championship.

Inexperience? Lack of leadership? Players out of position? Unsettled back line? Midfield make-up? Not learning from mistakes?







By Glen Williams

Friday 14th February 2025


The Bluebirds have 15 games left to avoid relegation and it has to start from the back, Riza has been in total charge since the 6th game of the season and has to take a lot of the blame. Purely on numbers, there is a strong argument to suggest this is the worst Cardiff City defence in a generation.

No Bluebirds team has ever conceded more than a half-century of goals after 31 games in the two-decades-long Championship era, but the 7-0 hammering at Elland Road last week saw City raise their bats, with a further two conceded at Fratton Park on Tuesday moving them on to 53 not out with 15 games still to go.

The main management team is Riza, Purse and Shaw.

Only one team, Portsmouth with 55, have conceded more goals this season than Cardiff, an alarming statistic that must be addressed and corrected for this crucial run-in of fixtures which will determine in which division they play their football next season.

Not learning from his mistakes is the melting pot — how often have Cardiff conceded that same goal, again and again, whereby an opposition winger is played in behind the full-back only to square it to a striker to tap home? Inexperience has played its part as well, which Omer Riza alluded to this week. Rinomhota has not played right-back in the Championship before this season, Will Fish has never played in the Championship, nor had Jesper Daland before this term.

This is the potential drawback of reducing the average age of your squad, there are often players learning on the job but it is also a necessary evil if clubs want value pumped into the club and to reap the financial rewards down the line.

There have been heavy, heavy losses which have served to exacerbate that number, too. The 7-0 and 5-0 drubbings by top-two Leeds and Burnley respectively have not helped the goals against column. In both of those games, everything the two teams hit seemed to fly into the back of the net. Conceding four against Hull City and the Boxing Day nightmare at Oxford United, when Cardiff let three go in, were also disappointing outings.

Worst manager I can remember, 3 wins in 18 is woeful.

The one consistent in our conceding goals is the lack of marking in area? Large percentage of goals conceded are when opposition player is unmarked within penalty area and score unchallenged! Surely when anylise games they can see this yet it as not been addressed ......why??

Allan 100% correct WIDE OPEN DEFENCE

We got lucky this week all rivals losing except pompey! That will not last given plymouths and Derby change of management ... we lose tomorrow relegation more likely than staying up... given our hard march fixtures

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

Nobody is saying swap riza for purse most will have to accept riza but a lot me included,
if a better quality manager was to be on offer for us tomorrow i would bite there hand off rather than hoping riza comes good,
and for all those pointing fingers at those who are unhappy with riza,
we will be pointing the finger at you if we go down.

The choice was Riza or Purse and not Riza or an experienced manager so it's not about keeping him over an experienced manager. I'm sure the numbers would be very different if the options were Riza or anyone else but Purse. So everyone can keep their fingers pointing at the 3 amigos & NOT at each other.

The "I told you so'" gloating if we go down with Riza needs to not be a thing as we still need to support the actual team.

The players being told to play out from the back whilst not being those type of players is what has caused this.

Nothing to do with McGuiness going.

Leeds although it was a shocking result are a class above anyone else in this division, that isn’t really the issue here.

What is an issue is how we perform against teams who are down there with us, teams we should be getting results against, like Pompey. Even then though, our away form is abysmal and their home form is good.

My poll yesterday just highlights how many people are too quick to get rid of a manager with over 15 people keen to get rid even if it was Purse who took over. That isn’t good for us at all.

Spot on.

Nobody is saying swap riza for purse most will have to accept riza but a lot me included,
if a better quality manager was to be on offer for us tomorrow i would bite there hand off rather than hoping riza comes good,
and for all those pointing fingers at those who are unhappy with riza,
we will be pointing the finger at you if we go down.

The choice was Riza or Purse and not Riza or an experienced manager so it's not about keeping him over an experienced manager. I'm sure the numbers would be very different if the options were Riza or anyone else but Purse. So everyone can keep their fingers pointing at the 3 amigos & NOT at each other.

The "I told you so'" gloating if we go down with Riza needs to not be a thing as we still need to support the actual team.

I agree with you, but i don't think any true city fan wants to come on here if (god forbid) we go down and say i told you so, I'm hoping to come on and say "i was wrong" but this is a huge gamble (Riza) that Tan and his puppets are playing out.

I believe Riza was the only choice, as other managers at the time wanted a 2 or 3 year contract. No decent manager is going to come here for a year. As if they are any good they cant achieve what they want so we are stuck with Riza or Purse.

I believe Riza was the only choice, as other managers at the time wanted a 2 or 3 year contract. No decent manager is going to come here for a year. As if they are any good they cant achieve what they want so we are stuck with Riza or Purse.

Correct.

For a long time, I have been more concerned about the defence rather than the attack which has also been underperforming. Some of you guys will know why this is the case, whether its down to individuals not being good enough or the organisation/training being inadequate or inappropriate. I have no idea. But I do believe that concern about getting goals may have diverted attention away from the problem of not conceding them. I am not convinced by many of our defenders, but it's pointless to name names. Selling McGuiness was a sign that management thought our defence was hunky dory. We all know that it isn't.

All this talk about McGuinness going.

Luton are below us and conceded only two less.

That's not the reason. It's just that the players we brought in to replace him aren't good enough.

Fish needs a run in the team to show what he can do because Daland hasn't helped.