Cardiff City have to bring back Neil Etheridge and the 'Tazmanian devil' to kick-start their season
By Scott Johnson
Friday 18th October 2019
The Bluebirds need to make a few tweaks if they are to get their campaign up and running
It feels a bit like two steps forward, one step back for Cardiff at the moment.
After a wobbly start, they managed to string together a seven-game unbeaten run that helped them creep back up the table, but they were then put to the sword by West Brom ahead of the international break.
Cardiff remain in touching distance of the top six though, even if it doesn’t feel like it, as they haven’t managed to hit the heights of their promotion season yet. The comfortable 3-0 win against QPR was probably the closest they’ve come, but even then the scoreline flattered them a bit.
QPR dominated large stretches of the game and hit the woodwork twice. But a few days earlier, Cardiff were better than the 2-2 they recorded at Hull and probably deserved to win, so these things sometimes tend to even themselves out.
In contrast, 4-2 at West Brom probably also flattered Cardiff because it was one-way traffic for most of the game and the hosts would have been disappointed not to score more.
The win saw the Baggies move to the top of the table and they are the standard that Cardiff need to emulate. Whether or not they are capable of reaching those heights this year will be revealed in time.
The QPR game was particularly encouraging because Cardiff finally looked like a Neil Warnock side again. They managed to break a youthful side’s spirit and reaped the rewards. It may not have been pretty, but it was undoubtedly effective and Cardiff are very good at it.
They are now 11th with 11 games played, so roughly a quarter of the way in to the season and if you extend their form over a full season, it won’t be good enough. Cardiff clearly need to be better, but how do they go about raising standards?
I think they can improve by reinforcing the spine of the side.
Alex Smithies has done little wrong since stepping in to deputise for Neil Etheridge. Smithies had one foot out of the door at the start of the season, but an injury to Etheridge saw him stay put and leap over Joe Day to become the deputy of choice.
Cardiff City goalkeeper Alex Smithies (left) collects the ball ahead of Derby County's Jack Marriott (centre)
Smithies has had to wait for his chance and will feel that he has done enough to keep his place. Warnock clearly agrees and Etheridge has been made to wait, sitting out the last few games on the bench. It does feel like we’re delaying the inevitable though.
Etheridge has a certain aura that Smithies cannot match. He is bigger, more imposing and appears to fill the goal. He is also a calming influence that spreads throughout the back four.
He is Cardiff’s reigning Player of the Year for good reason and they miss him, despite Smithies' best efforts.
Sol Bamba has also been a big loss. Hardly a calming influence like Etheridge, Bamba is more like a Tazmanian devil, unpredictable and charging all over the place, but how Cardiff miss him.
Erratic he may be, but Bamba leads by example and is a very vocal presence. So much so that it leaves a void when he’s not there. It sometimes feels like Cardiff lack a personality when he’s not out there.
Bamba is approaching full fitness and it will be interesting to see how Warnock plays it when he is available. Aden Flint and Sean Morrison have formed a pretty solid partnership in Bamba’s absence, but it will be hard to keep him out.
Cardiff would certainly look more formidable with Etheridge and Bamba providing an obstacle.
Sol Bamba is getting closer to full fitness (Image: Gareth Everett/Huw Evans Agency)
Joe Ralls started the season like rocket, one of very few, and is reassuringly consistent amongst a sometimes up and down collective. He is at least a seven out of 10 every week and he has been a big loss in recent weeks.
Cardiff have fierce competition for places in central midfield and have yet to find the right blend, although it is a given that Ralls will be in there somewhere.
History suggests that Cardiff’s favoured midfield trio may end up being Ralls, Marlon Pack and Leandro Bacuna, which is undoubtedly solid, but rather lacking in invention.
Lee Tomlin and Callum Paterson would address that issue and have their fair share of supporters, but fitness is an ongoing concern for Tomlin and an immediate issue for Paterson.
Then there’s Danny Ward. He has been unlucky with injuries and his Cardiff career has yet to catch fire, but maybe the West Brom game was finally a turning point. Summoned from the bench, he responded by single-handedly dragging Cardiff back in to the game with two late goals.
Ward has made a little go a long way in recent weeks and he deserves a run in the side. Robert Glatzel has shown promise and offers a greater aerial threat, but expecting him to shoulder Cardiff’s attacking burden so soon after joining, and sometimes twice a week, is a lot to ask.
When Ward plays, he ensures Cardiff have more tempo and intensity, two qualities that are sometimes in short supply, especially in the final third.
The fact that he can play anywhere across the front three is another bonus and surely Warnock will now find space for him somewhere in the side.
Cardiff are one of the division’s top sides and it's time that they started showing it. Only Brentford, Bristol City and West Brom, marginally, have spent more this season and they already had a strong squad to begin with.
The reintroduction of Etheridge, Bamba, Ralls and Ward would give them a mighty lift and the backbone of a side capable of giving West Brom a far greater test the next time they meet.
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