' Nathan Blake responds to Sam Allardyce criticism '

Cardiff City Nathan Blake responds to Sam Allardyce criticism

Blakey came under fire from Big Sam for questioning Neil Warnock's approach




By Nathan Blake


Wednesday 11th September 2019



The international break has come and gone and I, for one, cannot wait for the Championship to get back up and running – starting with Cardiff City against Derby County at Pride Park.

Before that, though, there is something I need to get off my chest.

As many of you will have seen, Sam Allardyce has taken umbrage with some of my opinions in recent weeks.

In his column for the Football League Paper, the former England boss claimed I know nothing about how to manage a football club, just a couple of weeks after Neil Warnock said the the same thing.

Yes, I have never managed a football team, but I am entitled to my opinion. Allardyce is also entitled to his views, Warnock is entitled to his... and so are the 20,000-plus fans who turn up week in, week out at Cardiff City Stadium.

Most of those will have never have managed a football team, either, but they're extremely knowledgeable.

If Warnock, or Allardyce, don't like my opinion, ignore it.

When I offer my views on Wales Online and in my column for the Echo, I do so constructively. If I see something which I, and the fans, feel is wrong, and can be put right by trying something else, I will point it out.

It's always for the good of Cardiff City FC. Like the fans, I love this club. I am desperate to see them succeed.

I am not coming for Warnock or being critical of him or the team. He can bring every ex-manager at me, but all I care about is analysing the performance.

I don't just say it for the sake of it, I am constructive. It's with reason and purpose.


Warnock is in a position whereby the fans have been brilliant with him, owner Vincent Tan has been fantastic in backing him well in the transfer market, so everything should be on point.

The only thing is, the results - and performances - have not been on point.

I'm not going to be made a scapegoat for explaining why things are not working and how I feel Warnock can put them right.

I'm sure Warnock is honest enough with players if they don't perform, I'm sure he tells them straight.

That's all I'm doing, too. The fans are not daft. They can see it for themselves. Trying to pretend everything is rosy at the moment would be ridiculous.


You just look at the situation between Michael Chopra and Steve Bruce up at Newcastle. Chopra claimed to be in contact with 'insiders' at the club who told him things, but that's not me – I don't need insiders.

I look at what's happening with my own eyes, analyse, give an opinion and that's that.

If I feel Cardiff can get better results by having more control in the midfield, and not always just pumping the ball upfield, I will say so. I firmly believe that to be the case.

If I feel the Sean Morrison-Aden Flint partnership at the back lacks a little pace and concerns me a little, that Bruno Manga and Sol Bamba are being missed, I will say so.

I love big Sol. When he returns, things will be better in my eyes.



I know plenty of fans are saying exactly the same things and hoping the manager puts it right. They know when the team isn't playing well.

I have been critical of the board and the hierarchy of the club in the past and there was no problem with that. I don't personally attack anybody. All I said was, as a board, they could do things a little differently.

And, in fairness to them, and I'm not saying it's just because of what I said, they have been brilliant in the last three seasons. You can't complain. Fans are happy and the stadium is a pleasant place to go with a great atmosphere.

But it is difficult when results are not going as well as perhaps they should be.

Maybe I am too truthful? Maybe Warnock would prefer to shut me down than say I'm correct?

Two years ago, when most were writing off Cardiff, I urged the fans to get back down to Cardiff City Stadium because I sensed something magical was happening. It did - Warnock was brilliant in getting the team promoted.

Lots were hoping it would be the same this time around. But I don't think anyone is saying we are at the point where we were before.


I've made my points clear in the past about the type of football I'd love to see Cardiff City play. Fast, free-flowing, more of a possession-based game. We saw it work so brilliantly when they beat Manchester United 2-0 in the final Premier League game, when the pressure was off.

Warnock and Allardyce have a different view, which is fair enough. They are cut from the same cloth in terms of footballing philosophy.

I suspect they think this 'tiki-taka' football was brought over from the continent by Pep Guardiola and the like. It wasn't. You watch football from the 1970s, as I do, and you will see teams like Chelsea and Crystal Palace rolling it out from the goalkeeper and playing it through the middle and up to the strikers.


Neil Warnock has been successful with his style of play and rightly earned plaudits (Image: Gareth Everett/Huw Evans Agency)
Liverpool did the same in the 1980s, too, winning everything.

There are so many different ways to play the game, whether it's 'tiki-taka', long ball, through the line, whatever. If it goes well then there will be fewer ripples, but if it goes badly then expect there to be criticism.

Sometimes Brazil are brilliant in the World Cup, sometimes they are not. Spain and France are the same. That's just the game we love, you choose how you want to play it, you stick by it and roll with the punches when it doesn't go your way.

Look, Warnock has been incredibly successful playing a certain way. He gets the plaudits for that and rightly so.

When it's not as successful, people will be question things, it's just part and parcel of the game. You can't shut it down and it's not personal.

Let's face facts, it's not gone according to plan so far this season, we'd each have preferred better, but we are only six games in. When we return from the international break, I hope to see an improved performance and Warnock's Bluebirds soar up that table.



September is a big month for us with some crucial games. Not just in terms of points, but in terms of reinstating confidence and belief that this team can indeed challenge for promotion.

It's just not quite clicking at the moment, for whatever reason. But we need to dig in, not concede so many goals and try to nick the one-nils that get momentum rolling.

At the moment, it looks a little bit of an uphill battle. But one game, one goal — maybe Junior Hoilett sticks one in the top corner from 25 yards out in the 90th minute — it could be a moment, a match, I don't know.

I just hope it's sooner rather than later.

I will always back Cardiff City Football Club. And I will always be prepared to make constructive suggestions that help to that end.

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It's always for the good of Cardiff City FC

More like the biggest headline he can make for Walesonline who im sure pay him well to do so. His interest is financial no doubt about it.

I just find it ironic that pundits such as Blake, Perry and Walsh who were just average players consider themselves experts when they hardly played total football, Perry in particular

I just find it ironic that pundits such as Blake, Perry and Walsh who were just average players consider themselves experts when they hardly played total football, Perry in particular

Perry knows what he is talking about and is very knowledgeable, a very good pundit so don't class him with the other two!

wait, i dont recall seeing alladyce name blake, i might be wrong, but nathan blake was saying the same thing that most sky sports pundits were saying, so for him to assume alladyce was basing his whole article on him, is a bit of an ego thing. but lets be honest, we havent seen anything we should be happy about from the first few games

Agree with Blakey, what's he meant to write? how good Aden Flint and Sean Morrison have been together? or how great the football and results have been?. Allardyce did the same thing at West Ham by lashing out and criticising anyone who had a go at him by saying they haven't been a manager so they basically don't deserve an opinion which is a lazy argument imo. I understand a lot of people don't seem to like Blakey so I might be in the minority on this

Is it a coincidence, that SA’s teams play a similar style of football to NW’s.

I agree with Allardyce and Warnock when you are trying to do a job and an average player with no management experience is writing against them I don't blame them saying about it.

So Blake is happy to get paid to criticise managers but is not happy when they respond what a hypocrite,

If you are going to criticise people of course they will respond but I agree with many on here about Blake not a player I count as a Cardiff legend he did score a great goal against the old man city in the cup but I would count Andy Campbells goal in the play off final far more important.

I am not saying what Blake said was wrong as a supporter I am disappointed with the start of the season but then supporters pay their money so deserve a view Blake gets paid and he can say what he likes but when you criticise an experience manager like Warnock expect a response and Allardyce was right to support another manager

I just find it ironic that pundits such as Blake, Perry and Walsh who were just average players consider themselves experts when they hardly played total football, Perry in particular

Perry knows what he is talking about and is very knowledgeable, a very good pundit so don't class him with the other two!

But he was no Beckenbauer when it came to playing ability so I find it difficult when he has a pop at our players for things he couldn't do himself

It's always for the good of Cardiff City FC

More like the biggest headline he can make for Walesonline who im sure pay him well to do so. His interest is financial no doubt about it.

Blakey has grew up in, played for and supported Cardiff his whole life. He does love this club just like you and me. So what if he gets paid for writting about the club? Doesn't mean his intentions are bad.

Sam Allardyce has turned into an absolute knob and this just puts the icing on the cake. He's not just saying Blakes comments are not valid he's saying none of us have a clue so in effect shut the f**k up.

I used to like him and thought he was ok but since he's been on TALKsport my opinion has changed.

You would think he invented Football the way he goes on at times, the man seems to have a serious ego.

I think he did well at Bolton (when you could still do well with a team like that before the money got stupid) but even then Bolton were splashing the cash, and since then has gone into Clubs and either done bang average or claimed to have saved them when the truth is they were never that bad anyway before getting sacked from the England Job for being a tool

As for what Blake has said, I have no idea, as I stoped buying the ECHO about 10-11 years ago and never look on Wales Online as it just used to crash all the time or take an eternity to load.

However, he's a former Footballer and irresepective of whether he's paid or not he's just saying it as he see's it like we all do on here and if he's not entitled to that then why is there even a Media, or forums, or internet, you had just aswell delete the lot.