Mon Jul 13, 2020 2:22 pm
The Plan B which needs addressing
By Glen Williams
Monday 13th July 2020
Right, let's preface this by saying that 10 points in five games is still a very good start and if you had given Cardiff City fans this start, still sitting in sixth, back at the start of June, they would have snapped your hand off.
The Bluebirds have been excellent for the most part, but the last two games have represented a major wobble and there are some key things which need addressing heading into a massive game against play-off rivals Derby County on Tuesday.
Firstly, City's go-to attacking ploy late on just doesn't seem to be having the effect it once had.
At the start of the campaign, under Neil Warnock, it seemed like Cardiff's default setting when they went behind was to lump it up to the big men.
Long throw-ins, pack the box for long free-kicks and corners and it seemed to work. No team has scored more from set pieces than Cardiff this season.
But, against Blackburn and Fulham, it perhaps highlighted that this Plan B isn't working anymore.
At the beginning of the campaign, City had Aden Flint, Marlon Pack, Sean Morrison and Callum Paterson as the big target men in the box and they would invariably win their aerial duels and cause mayhem in the box.
What has become abundantly clear, since Neil Harris has moved away from Pack and Flint in his team selection, is that Morrison cannot do it on his own.
The sheer number of balls pumped into the box towards Morrison, with Paterson now rarely used as an option, means he is far easier to defend against. Opposition defences double or triple up on him and it is far less effective.
When Cardiff aren't chasing the game and it opens up naturally, like against Bristol City, their new, passing style created gaps organically, with the quality of Lee Tomlin and Danny Ward combining splendidly at Ashton Gate.
But when the Bluebirds go behind, their default setting of long balls into the box needs to be addressed. Either chuck Aden Flint on up top or find another way to break the opposition down.