' Ole Solskjaer says what he believes is needed now '

Walesonline

Saturday April 19th 2014

Cardiff City boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer believes two wins from the final three games will guarantee the Bluebirds’ Premier League place for next season.

Solskjaer’s men head to the north east for their next two games, away to Sunderland and Newcastle, before rounding off the 2013-14 campaign with a home finale against Chelsea.

The Bluebirds manager didn’t really know whether to view the 1-1 draw with Stoke as two points lost at home or a hugely important one gained.

But asked where he saw Cardiff’s situation following the result, Solskjaer said: “I do think two wins will be enough.

“We’ve got to make sure we get one more win from these final matches than Norwich manage and also ensure we get more points than Fulham.

“We’ve got two big journeys coming up to the north-east and we need two really big performances up there to give ourselves a decent chance against Chelsea in our final match which is at home.

“We have three matches left to rescue the season, as such, and we’ve got to ensure we come through that huge test successfully.”

Asked how he viewed the result achieved against Stoke, Solskjaer replied: “I guess it depends exactly when you start thinking about it.

“For the first 75 to 80 minutes, I thought we deserved more than a draw.

“Towards the end, when Stoke were in the ascendancy, perhaps you could argue we didn’t even deserve a point.

“We were certainly indebted to a superb stop right at the end by David Marshall, but he’s been playing superbly for us throughout the season by doing things like that.”

The game centre around two key penalty decisions, one awarded for a so-called foul by Kim Bo-Kyung on Peter Odemwingie and the other when Fraizer Campbell went to ground under a challenge made by Steven N’Zonzi.

Neither looked clear cut penalties, but on each occasion referee Howard Webb pointed to the spot.

Asked his verdict on the decisions, Solskjaer replied: “I certainly thought at the time the decision to award one against us was very harsh.

“Having since studied the TV replays, I’ve seen nothing to change my mind.

“To be fair to Howard Webb, he has to make a decision there and then and doesn’t have the benefit of video replays.

“But I didn’t think it was a penalty and I still don’t think it should have been one.

“With regards our penalty, you may find this strange but at the moment I haven’t been shown a video replay of it.”

Marko Arnautovic scored from the spot-kick to give Stoke a lead right on half-time, a goal which could have demoralised the Bluebirds.

But Solskjaer said the penalty award had the opposite effect upon his players as they trudged back into dressing room.

“Actually, it galvanised us,” said Solskjaer. “The players were out there close to the action and they believed it was an unjust decision.

“That meant I didn’t actually have to say too much to them at half-time, other than to ensure they were in control of things.

“They knew they had been hard done by and they said ‘Right, let’s use this to put things right and gain some momentum’.

“That’s exactly what happened. They came out for the second half determined to put Stoke under pressure and get a goal back.

“We did just that.

“After equalising, we then thought we had scored again through Juan Cala, but unfortunately it was ruled out.

“We were on the front foot, we got the crowd going.

“Even I was celebrating when Cala got the ball in the net, before we each began to realise it wasn’t going to stand. But the reaction of the players was terrific and hopefully we can take some of this momentum with us into the game at Sunderland.”

Solskjaer reserved some special words for his Norwegian teenager Mats Moller Daehli, who flourished and troubled Stoke with his vision and dribbling skills.

“Mats is the sort of player who gets you on the edge of your seat whenever he has the ball at his feet,” said Solskjaer.

“He has done superbly well since coming to this club and fully merits his place in the starting team.”

Absolutely agree with Ole. The problem is, I can't see where they will come from. Sunderland have started producing the goods with a draw against Man City and a win against Chelsea - both away from home. Newcastle's terrible form cannot possibly continue (when does Pardue's touchline ban end?) and do you fancy taking three points off Chelsea?

People keep talking about Norwich. Sure they look likely to drop as do Fulham but who will be the third team? Sunderland are still bottom BUT they have a game in hand, which, if they won would put them above us. If we beat them and, if WBA beat them great. The reality is that we might have to rely on the Jacks taking all three points off them on the last day of the season in order for us to survive. Do you honestly believe Gary Monk would want that?

Absolutely agree with Ole. The problem is, I can't see where they will come from. Sunderland have started producing the goods with a draw against Man City and a win against Chelsea - both away from home. Newcastle's terrible form cannot possibly continue (when does Pardue's touchline ban end?) and do you fancy taking three points off Chelsea?

People keep talking about Norwich. Sure they look likely to drop as do Fulham but who will be the third team? Sunderland are still bottom BUT they have a game in hand, which, if they won would put them above us. If we beat them and, if WBA beat them great. The reality is that we might have to rely on the Jacks taking all three points off them on the last day of the season in order for us to survive. Do you honestly believe Gary Monk would want that?

You reckon we will beat Southampton away? Oh wait..

Solskjaer ready for showdown
Cardiff boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has billed next Sunday's showdown against fellow Barclays Premier League relegation candidates Sunderland as "a proper cup final."

http://sport.bt.com/sportfootball/footb ... 3895023508?