City must build on their greatest ever result

Fully five days on, I still sense a whirr of bewilderment about events at Cardiff City Stadium at the weekend.

Did that really happen? How did Malky Mackay’s magnificent men pull it off?

And, putting a cold, professional hat on, how do they follow up their brilliant exploits by ensuring tomorrow’s home clash with Everton isn’t one of those classic after the Lord Mayor’s show performances?

Cardiff 3 Manchester City 2 was probably the greatest result achieved by the Bluebirds since the iconic 1971 triumph over Real Madrid.

Given that this Manchester City side is the most expensively assembled in the history of football, there is perhaps even an argument for saying Mackay’s Class of 2013 have eclipsed Jimmy Scoular’s European Cup Winners Cup bashers.

Judge it as you see fit, I guess. Let’s just say Cardiff’s first top flight match in more than 50 years was worth every single day of the wait.

Sunday’s occasion was right up there with the finest recent sporting occasions I have attended. Yes, a cliched ‘I was there moment’ to always be cherished and remembered.

The Cardiff players embrace as dreams of an unlikely victory become a reality


As was the 2005 Grand Slam decider against Ireland by Mike Ruddock’s Wales team, when about 300,000 people had descended upon the Welsh capital.

As was Wales’ 2-1 triumph over Italy in 2002, when more than 74,000 packed inside the Millennium Stadium to witness Craig Bellamy’s winning goal that evening.

There was only around third of that number inside Cardiff City Stadium on Sunday, but I bet if you asked Bellamy he would say the noise, fervour and passion matched anything seen at a sell-out Millennium against the Italians.

I’ve never seen a crowd erupt with such fervour when a goal has been scored as with Aron Gunnarsson’s equaliser against Man City.

One-eyed bias? Well, don’t take my word for it, listen to Sky pundit Gary Neville.

Where does the Man City victory rank in Cardiff's history? Scroll through the gallery for some of the club's greatest wins


It remains the club's most iconic result...Fred Keenor led Cardiff City to the FA Cup in 1927

Keenor and his Cardiff City team celebrate their FA Cup win

Keenor triumphantly clutches the FA Cup

A win against Aston Villa gave Cardiff promotion to the top flight on April 16, 1960, although they were runners up to Villa in the league

The team wore their "lucky" white kits for the match

The official match day programme for the promotion-clinching match

The highlight of Cardiff's top flight season was a win against Spurs, with Derek Tapscott scoring the winner

But their win against Real Madrid in 1971 remains among their most famous triumphs

Jimmy Scoular and the team read a celebratory copy of the South Wales Echo

Phil Stant celebrates Nathan Blake's goal in 1994 that knocked Manchester City out of the FA Cup

Blakey celebrates with goalkeeper Mark Grew

Scott Young scores the winner in a 2-1 FA Cup win over high-flying Leeds in 2002

The following year, Andy Campbell's play-off final goal sent the Bluebirds into the Championship

Campbell celebrates the triumph at the Millennium Stadium

The next big Bluebirds occasion was the 2008 FA Cup Final at Wembley

And the club returned for the 2012 Carling Cup final, where they just came up short in extra-time against Liverpool after Ben Turner had scored a late equaliser

The Bluebirds secured their return to the big time late last season with a 1-1 draw that sparked wild celebrations. Here, loan star Leon Barnett is carried by fans

Last weekend's win against Manchester City was right up there with the best as Aron Gunnarsson brought the Bluebirds level in front of the watching football world

Fraizer Campbell gave Cardiff the lead

...and there were incredible scenes as Campbell secured the win with his second




“You will have to go some to beat a stadium celebrating a goal as wildly as this,” he declared after Gunnarsson had scored.

Neville has played at every footballing hotbed in Europe, including Old Trafford, Anfield, Istanbul, Milan, Madrid, Moscow, Barcelona. So when he says something like that, you know you have witnessed something very special.

You know that anyway when you’ve seen the drama unfold as it happens and then want to go home and watch the 90 minutes back on TV, too.

There were a fair few in the Welsh capital who will have done that. I know I did.

In hindsight, there were little signs that the David versus Goliath upset – one of the biggest in Premier League history – was on the cards.

Just before kick-off, as Bluebirds fans created a crescendo of noise, Bellamy gathered his team-mates into one of those little huddles where he emphasised the fans were the 12th man and this was a winnable game.

While that was going on, the Man City Galacticos stood around, just waiting to start, I remember thinking at the time they didn’t know what was about to hit them.

They soon did, though, immediately thrown out of their stride as their every touch of the ball was jeered, their every mistake under pressure cheered.

Without their inspirational skipper Vincent Kompany to offer leadership, you suddenly sensed Man City might just be a teeny vulnerable, particularly as the Bluebirds were so inspired by the atmosphere they each seemed to suddenly get got bigger, stronger, faster.

Then Eden Dzeko scored and it was game over. Or so we thought. What no-one predicted was the Bluebirds battling back to score not just once, but three times.

Incredible. How do they follow that, then?

Well, we’ve seen this sort of thing before. A team reaches such a high, they invariably dip next time around as the mental and physical effort takes its toll.



Cardiff City Stadium won’t always be as rocking as it was Sunday, when the ground reverberated so much Bellamy went on record as stating the fans won the match, not the players.

But it will still be an intimidating place for teams to visit, referees wouldn’t be human if they were not occasionally influenced and that can play into the Bluebirds’ hands.

Most times this season they will be up against better opponents. That will be the case once more tomorrow as the likes of Marouane Fellaini, Leighton Baines, Nikica Jelavic and Phil Jagielka come to the Welsh capital.

But Cardiff City Stadium makes it a great leveller. If Manchester City can be beaten there, the Bluebirds players and fans must believe anyone can be.

Sorry guys I havent got time to edit out the text that are from picture captions, if someone can do it for me ill copy and paste it to the top later.

Nothing compares to the achievement of beating Real Madrid, no where close.

Yep some of us are getting carried away.

We have a secret weapon tomorrow and that's the referee Anthony Taylor as we have not lost a league match with him in charge. He has also sent off an opponent in each of the last two games of ours where he was the referee.


Go for the hatrick Anthony - you know it makes sense.

I would remind you Gavin,that one swallow does not make a summer,but saying that,it was a wonderful result against Man City

I would remind you Gavin,that one swallow does not make a summer,but saying that,it was a wonderful result against Man City

Did you actually watch the game? If you think Malkys immense tactical nous combined with the spine of our side being at the highest quality in decades. Caulker, Gary Medel, Kim, Gunnars and Frazier Campbell all produced displays worthy of a top half premier league side. If my dear window licker, you think that'll be "one swallow"then are seriously on a wind up, you cliched clueless kunt

Stop sending me private messages too you f*cking oddball

The win against them will do us wonders against Everton confidence wise and atmosphere wise, The atmosphere will carry on through from the Man City game!

ill be happy with a point however i feel we may put in a good performance but edge a loss.

I would remind you Gavin,that one swallow does not make a summer,but saying that,it was a wonderful result against Man City

Surely the grearest ever result must be winning the FA cup