Carling Cup run cost Cardiff City Premier League dream

Aron Gunnarsson: Carling Cup run cost Cardiff City Premier League dream

by Terry Phillips, Wales On SundayJul 22 2012



MIDFIELD star Aron Gunnarsson believes Cardiff City blew their promotion hopes when they reached the Carling Cup final last season.

The Icelandic ace is the first person from the dressing room to openly admit the Wembley showdown with Liverpool affected the Bluebirds’ in their Championship run-in... a theory many fans had, even though club officials always denied it.

When the Bluebirds defeated Crystal Palace in the semi-finals to clinch their place against Liverpool, Malky Mackay’s men were third in the Championship table, tucked in behind West Ham and Southampton.



By the time Cardiff reflected on a magnificent team effort in the final they had managed only one win from six league games. The run meant Mackay’s team had slipped to eighth and were never able to recover enough to challenge for a top two finish.

“We had a bad spell leading up to the final and that should not have happened,” admits Gunnarsson today,

“Getting to the final was an outstanding achievement for Cardiff, but looking back it did affect our league form.

“We talked about that as a group and said it didn’t, but today we can see it did. We lost a lot of points during that time, points we believe we could and should have earned.

“But we are a strong group, learned our lessons last season and are ready for another season. We are a year older, the squad has a lot of quality and we know exactly what we want to achieve.

“Every player would have wanted to earn promotion and win the Carling Cup last season, but we gave it everything we had. We went into 2011-12 with a new-look squad, lots of new players, a new manager and staff.

“People said we’d finish around 10th or 11th, but we proved them wrong and were so close to taking an extra step.

“We have to use those experiences and look forward. We have set high standards over the last year – and it’s time to push on.”

Gunnarsson, who made 50 first-team appearances last season, was talking at the team hotel for a week’s pre-season training camp in Switzerland, relaxing in the sun by the shores of Lake Geneva.

He had completed a tough morning session with the squad and knew there was more hard work to come after lunch.

Manager Mackay and his Bluebirds fly out of Geneva heading for Bristol at lunchtime today at the end of a trip which has been tough with a fair bit of fun on the way.

Mackay and his staff have led double sessions every day, while the group also went white-water rafting and played table football.

“The training has been tough, really tough,” said Gunnarsson. “We know it will be worth it when the season starts. We will certainly be fit and this week has been the groundwork for us.

“Once the matches start we’ll be back into training and recovery. We have to be fit and that’s what the gaffer is aiming for.”

Gunnarsson, 22, faces stiff competition for places in midfield. Jordon Mutch, a £2m signing from Birmingham City has brought undoubted quality through the centre, while Peter Whittingham and Stephen McPhail are strong contenders for the starting line-up.

“I’m not guaranteed a place in the team and understand that,” said Gunnarsson. “There is more money coming into the club and new players. You never know what type of players will be coming in.

“Jordon has impressed since he joined us. He’s a quality player and it’s good to have that competition for places. It keeps everybody on their toes.

“My focus is on being as fit as possible and doing what I can to earn a place in the team. I played in different midfield positions last season, but I don’t mind that.

“I’ve played international football for Iceland as a sitting midfield and filled the role for Coventry City. I’ve played further forward for Cardiff and enjoyed it.”

The Bluebirds missed out on promotion last season after finishing sixth and the mindset throughout the squad is to take the next step.

“It’s going to be another hard season,” said former AZ Alkmaar player Gunnarsson. “Blackburn , Wolves and Bolton came down from the Premier League and will be strong opposition.

“There are others including Blackpool, Leicester and more who will be looking to chase and sustain a place near the top of the table.

“But we’ll just concentrate on ourselves, believe in the way we play, keep going and see where that takes us.

“We can’t worry about what other teams are doing until we play them.”




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I def dont, I believe if they had bought in January 2011 and 2012, we would of been promoted.

Even Malky said at the last meeting I went to a few weeks ago, those who spent heavily in January reaped the rewards.
Southampton, Westham and Reading.

Annis I dont think we wern't good enough to go up last season, Carling Cup run or not. The squad was just to small.

Annis I dont think we wern't good enough to go up last season, Carling Cup run or not. The squad was just to small.

I feel exactly the same.

I still think not getting another striker in, cost us. Reading snapped up Roberts, Saints signed Sharp and West Ham signed everyone under the sun. Wonder where these three teams are now?

I still think not getting another striker in, cost us. Reading snapped up Roberts, Saints signed Sharp and West Ham signed everyone under the sun. Wonder where these three teams are now?

Kenny Miller and his family thought exactly the same.

Sometimes transfers come off, sometimes they don't. We were clearly in the market in January and it seems that the club did everything possible to sign Noone and had their chairman not had a change of heart then he'd have been our player? There is no question that the cup run had benefits and negatives attached to it. On the plus side, it helped the players understand how each other played and meant we probably wouldn't have got to the playoffs without that understanding and togetherness. On the down side, it clearly played a huge part in the players feeling the fatigue when they did. It's no coincidence that Brum played about as many games as us due to their European run but when it came to the playoffs, they too just run out of steam.

I agree with Gunnar that in the end, it probably did tell but then without it, I don't feel we would have had a playoff to worry about.

SO does that mean we will ACTUALLY INCREASE the squad by quite a few players this year OR sell some (or get rid of ) and just replace them?

West Ham were a different class. We would never have beat them even if we had bought one or two players. They just outclassed us with the height, pace and creativity in the attacking third and Vaz Te played brilliantly. Our players just didnt have an answer and unless we signed Iniesta and Messi there was no chance of winning over 2 legs.

I think last year was a year too early. We weren't ready and we needed that extra year.

This year we will do it - and do it in style

I def dont, I believe if they had bought in January 2011 and 2012, we would of been promoted.

Even Malky said at the last meeting I went to a few weeks ago, those who spent heavily in January reaped the rewards.
Southampton, Westham and Reading.

Thats twice in a row that i agree totally with you

Its all if's & but's, it's the same as saying if we signed a better keeper than Bywater we would of gone up the that season...

Don't think I would swap that cup run for promotion last season, I'll never forget that final, regardless of the result!

West Ham were a different class. We would never have beat them even if we had bought one or two players. They just outclassed us with the height, pace and creativity in the attacking third and Vaz Te played brilliantly. Our players just didnt have an answer and unless we signed Iniesta and Messi there was no chance of winning over 2 legs.

I think West Ham, last season, were like you were 2010/11. On paper you should have walked it. I had you nailed on for promotion and just wondered who would get the other two places. It was DJ who wasn't up to the job.

The League Cup final was a total distraction and I felt at the time that, given our flimsy squad, it would cost us several league points.

The only surprise is that a lot of City fans couldn't see this at the time.

If we'd strengthened with a fraction of the £100m (which still hasn't materialised btw) in January we may have had a cup final and promotion to the biggest league in the world sewn up. Why it didn't happen only the Malaysians can tell us

The cup run certainly had an effect but I wouldn't have changed it.

I don't think last years squad was to small just unbalanced and to many like for like players who weren't good enough.

Well Oxford, Huddersfield, Leicester didnt seem to effect much. Even when something like 7 players were out injured for Southampton we put on a hard working great perfromance to beat them. Burnley and Blackburn contributed to our unbeaten run and made us stronger. Say what you want, we didnt strengthen or we weren't concentrating, I wouldnt change it. It's another bit of history in the books for us and it added to an amazing season which I enjoyed and was proud of the team. If we finshed play offs and failed then it wouldn't be as good also the exictment when we got there was brilliant and it made the season look better for us.