Why Bristol City clash will show exactly how far Cardiff City have come since Neil Warnock
The Bluebirds take on the Robins in a Severnside derby this Friday night, but the clash has taken on more significance in the last year
By Glen Williams
Thursday 5th November 2020
Cardiff City welcome cross-border rivals Bristol City to the Welsh capital on Friday on the back of a resounding win.
But rewind almost exactly one year ago and the very same sentence could have been written.
November 10 last year was Neil Warnock's last match in charge of the Bluebirds and, as many will remember, it was that Severnside derby, the one in which City meekly limped to a 1-0 defeat.
The defeat by the Robins followed a 4-2 drubbing of Birmingham City, the perfect response to a woeful performance against south Wales rivals Swansea City. The Birmingham result, though, looked to have simply papered over the cracks.
Two derby defeats in three games took its toll and Warnock rightly decided it was time to leave. He never wanted his legend as Cardiff manager to be tainted by a poor final campaign.
The clash with Bristol, which also came just before an international break, was Warnock's last in charge and it was a performance which reinforced the views of the doubters and highlighted just why City had fallen so far off the pace early in the season.
The Bluebirds had gone stale, their style of football was being found out and performances lacked that fight, bite, blood and thunder, which had become synonymous under the legendary manager.
A lot has happened, both on and off the pitch, since then.
Neil Harris took over, started brightly, plateaued through the festive period and then embarked on a charge towards the play-off spots at the back end of last season.
But the start of this season, for many, has drawn parallels with the beginning of last year's campaign. An underwhelming, frustrating start which has seen a more than capable team punching below its weight.
What is crucial now, of course, is City's 3-0 drubbing of Barnsley is not a flash in the pan — as that Birmingham result seemingly was for Warnock — and it now sets the blueprint for what is to be expected moving forward.
So, a year on from that drab derby day at Cardiff City Stadium, what has changed?
Many Cardiff fans wanted to see their team evolve their style of football, fearing it had become predictable and perhaps even obsolete under their former manager, and Harris sought to change that.
But talk of a "better" style of play has died down somewhat in recent months, with Harris still seemingly deciphering how best to utilise this group of players.
In truth, it hasn't been a marked change in football since Warnock left, a point the manager made clearly when he brought his Middlesbrough team to the Welsh capital a few weeks ago.
Speaking after the game, Warnock said: "They [Cardiff] are the best physical side and the towel's round the side with every throw-in.
"We defended really well. We've done a thousand miles this week and the Middlesbrough fans should be proud of those players. We've responded in those three games.
"I was told they [Cardiff] had changed style since I'd left. It was weird getting off the bus and seeing one or two staff when I was there. But life goes on, it was the right time for me to leave.
"I'd done everything I could. I'm not sure the style of football has changed if I'm honest from what I was told."
Perhaps that is a little too blunt of an assessment.
Cardiff certainly enjoy more possession of the football on a far more regular basis now than they did under Warnock and the midfield players appear to have a more pronounced passing role than they did under Harris' predecessor.
But the premise to which Warnock alludes is clearly the team's use of a big front man in Kieffer Moore, reliance on quick breakaway goals and utilising long throw-ins and set pieces.
Crucially, though, the personnel has changed and that is the key difference.
While supporters have been critical at times during Harris' reign, it is hard to deny his success in the transfer market since taking over.
That is something which could not be said of Warnock, whose transfers ranged wildly from big successes to woeful failures.
Harris' recruitment has been extremely sound and now, Cardiff fans will hope, they should reap the rewards.
Harry Wilson has brought star power to this City attack, while Sheyi Ojo and Kieffer Moore have both also enjoyed excellent starts to their Bluebirds careers.
Jordi Osei-Tutu, too, has been a real revelation at right back and his injury is a real blow for City in the short term.
Filip Benkovic comes with pedigree, although he is yet to feature, while Dillon Phillips looks a shrewd acquisition with an eye on the future.
So while the style of play might have changed only slightly, City fans should have confidence that there are better players there to execute the game plan.
Talk of mounting pressure on Harris after a lacklustre start seemed a little premature, especially given the credit he should have in the bank still owing to his play-off push last term.
But now, with confidence high after a convincing win over Barnsley, the manager must now rally his troops to do what Warnock could not – back it up with a big win over rivals Bristol City to silence the early-season doubters.
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