'People will fear Cardiff City!' Neil Harris targets promoti
Fri Feb 14, 2020 12:18 pm
'People will fear Cardiff City!' Neil Harris targets promotion rivals as season finally ignites
By Katie Sanders
Friday 14th February 2020
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=213013
"This squad is good enough for the top six."
The Bluebirds are looking to make it nine points in a week - a return that will put them firmly in the play-off picture
Neil Harris believes a Cardiff City win over Wigan Athletic this weekend will strike fear into the Bluebirds' Championship play-off rivals.
Cardiff were at their very best under Harris on Wednesday night, thrashing Huddersfield Town 3-0 at the John Smith's Stadium and, suddenly, there is a great optimism enveloping the Welsh capital club.
Ahead of Saturday's tie with lowly Wigan Athletic, City sit in eighth place but, crucially, just four points away from the play-offs and just seven away from the automatic promotion spots.
They have lost just two league games under Harris during his 16 matches in charge and have proven incredibly difficult to beat, QPR away aside.
But it is in the last week or so Cardiff have really emerged as serious contenders for the play-offs, winning three of their last four fixtures, yielding 10 points from a possible 12.
Harris believes teams will seriously begin to take notice if they take all three points from their game against the Latics on Saturday afternoon.
With so much of the season having been centred around clawing their way back up the ladder, he believes a positive result this weekend could cause a stir among the teams above them.
"We’re in a good position and teams above us will be looking over their shoulder if we can get the result at the weekend, if we can make it nine points in a week, people will be looking at Cardiff and fearing them.
"We are building and we have given ourselves a great chance, but I don’t want to get expectation levels too high.
"We can still be much better than we are and we know that. We want to do that.
"We have taken those small steps to get where we are and now all of a sudden, out of the blue, we find ourselves on the fringes of the play-offs.
"But now we are on the fringes - I want to be in there."
"This squad is good enough for the top six."
From the very moment Harris took his first press conference, the manager made no secret of the fact that his sights were firmly set on the play-off spots, despite Neil Warnock leaving City in 14th place.
Given this Bluebirds side had just been relegated from the Premier League, many tipped them to bounce straight back up and Cardiff supporters were expecting their side to be challenging at the top end of the table, rather than becoming embroiled in a mid-table scrap.
And while there is now a quiet optimism stirring in the Welsh capital following recent results, Harris sent a reminder that their legs could be cut out from beneath them if they slip up now.
"The play-off chances are more realistic than they were seven days ago, I would love to get carried away and get really excited but we have to be sensible," he added.
"The table is so tight, you can go from eighth to 12th really quickly but you can also go from eighth to fourth quickly as well.
"What I do know about us is that we’re getting better all the time, we’re a much better group now than we were a few weeks ago and that’s key for us, if you want to be successful you have that spirit and togetherness.
"We have to follow two really good away performances with a strong performance at home.
"The players need to realise that for every bit of energy and focus and discipline they put in needs be followed up with more, and the creative side of things as well needs to be backed up at home. "
By Katie Sanders
Friday 14th February 2020
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=213013
"This squad is good enough for the top six."
The Bluebirds are looking to make it nine points in a week - a return that will put them firmly in the play-off picture
Neil Harris believes a Cardiff City win over Wigan Athletic this weekend will strike fear into the Bluebirds' Championship play-off rivals.
Cardiff were at their very best under Harris on Wednesday night, thrashing Huddersfield Town 3-0 at the John Smith's Stadium and, suddenly, there is a great optimism enveloping the Welsh capital club.
Ahead of Saturday's tie with lowly Wigan Athletic, City sit in eighth place but, crucially, just four points away from the play-offs and just seven away from the automatic promotion spots.
They have lost just two league games under Harris during his 16 matches in charge and have proven incredibly difficult to beat, QPR away aside.
But it is in the last week or so Cardiff have really emerged as serious contenders for the play-offs, winning three of their last four fixtures, yielding 10 points from a possible 12.
Harris believes teams will seriously begin to take notice if they take all three points from their game against the Latics on Saturday afternoon.
With so much of the season having been centred around clawing their way back up the ladder, he believes a positive result this weekend could cause a stir among the teams above them.
"We’re in a good position and teams above us will be looking over their shoulder if we can get the result at the weekend, if we can make it nine points in a week, people will be looking at Cardiff and fearing them.
"We are building and we have given ourselves a great chance, but I don’t want to get expectation levels too high.
"We can still be much better than we are and we know that. We want to do that.
"We have taken those small steps to get where we are and now all of a sudden, out of the blue, we find ourselves on the fringes of the play-offs.
"But now we are on the fringes - I want to be in there."
"This squad is good enough for the top six."
From the very moment Harris took his first press conference, the manager made no secret of the fact that his sights were firmly set on the play-off spots, despite Neil Warnock leaving City in 14th place.
Given this Bluebirds side had just been relegated from the Premier League, many tipped them to bounce straight back up and Cardiff supporters were expecting their side to be challenging at the top end of the table, rather than becoming embroiled in a mid-table scrap.
And while there is now a quiet optimism stirring in the Welsh capital following recent results, Harris sent a reminder that their legs could be cut out from beneath them if they slip up now.
"The play-off chances are more realistic than they were seven days ago, I would love to get carried away and get really excited but we have to be sensible," he added.
"The table is so tight, you can go from eighth to 12th really quickly but you can also go from eighth to fourth quickly as well.
"What I do know about us is that we’re getting better all the time, we’re a much better group now than we were a few weeks ago and that’s key for us, if you want to be successful you have that spirit and togetherness.
"We have to follow two really good away performances with a strong performance at home.
"The players need to realise that for every bit of energy and focus and discipline they put in needs be followed up with more, and the creative side of things as well needs to be backed up at home. "
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Re: 'People will fear Cardiff City!' Neil Harris targets pro
Fri Feb 14, 2020 7:01 pm
Tomorrow's game is massive now. After two good away wins, Wigan at home is exactly the sort of test we have failed in the past. Not this time though... Come on you blues. 
