Fulham 1-2 Cardiff City (Agg 3-2)

Neeskens Kebano celebrates his all-important goal

Cardiff win the game but fail to overturn the two-goal deficit following the first leg, with Fulham progressing to the play-off final against Brentford.

Goals from Curtis Nelson and Lee Tomlin helped the Bluebirds to a 2-1 victory, with Neeskens Kebano scoring for Fulham.

Nelson had put Cardiff 1-0 up in the 8th minute with a header from a corner, only for Kebano to equalise just 24 seconds later. He got in front of Leandro Bacuna to fire in Bobby Decordova-Reid’s low cross.

It was a scrappy first half with Fulham having the better chances and Cardiff struggling to get a hold in the game. Alex Smithies, who was excellent on the night, kept City in the game through keeping out efforts from Fulham.

Neil Harris made a couple of changes at half time, bringing on Tomlin and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing for Marlon Pack and Junior Hoilett and it had an instant impact. From a Will Vaulks long throw, Mendez-Laing had a header saved before the ball fell to Tomlin who swerved to fire in to put City back in front on the night.

The Cardiff players celebrate Lee Tomlin’s goal

From then on it was a tense affair. The Bluebirds probably had the better of the action but couldn’t find the all-important goal to send the game to extra time. Fulham came very close to scoring and would’ve scored if not for Smithies, who twice denied substitute Aboubakar Kamara. The second one was a fantastic save as he somehow tipped Kamara’s effort on to the post.

Cardiff came close when Bacuna crossed the ball in towards Danny Ward, but Ward couldn’t get a touch on the ball. Mendez-Laing also came close when his effort curled away from goal.

Cardiff came so close to scoring, but couldn’t force the ball in during a goalmouth scramble. Goalkeeper Marek Rodak pushes out the initial effort before Fulham managed to clear the ball to Vaulks, whose well-timed volley was tipped over by Rodak.

The chance that Cardiff were waiting for fell to substitute Robert Glatzel, who fired over on the volley from fellow substitute Callum Paterson’s header. It was a tough chance but you could see the frustration within the Cardiff players, who felt that was their last chance.

The players dropped to their knees at full-time. They’d come so close and the players felt that. It had been a phenomenal effort to finish in the top six and then to come so close to overcoming Fulham and getting through to the play-off final.

Looking at the game, like Harris said, Fulham scored at key moments, in stoppage time at the end of the first leg and straight after Nelson’s goal in this game. If it wasn’t for Kebano’s goal in this game, who knows what would’ve happened. All City needed to do was keep it tight for the 10 minutes after the goal and go from then.

With the disappointment it would be easy to forget the incredible job that Harris has done since coming in. He was written off at the start by many fans, including myself, but he has proven the doubters wrong. Since his arrival Cardiff’s record has been up there as one of the best, which has coincided with the team climbing up the table. We were 14th when he arrived, but we finished in 5th.

Not only has he helped the team improve their league position, but also the style of play is improving. Under Harris the team has started to pass it around more which didn’t happen very often under former manager Neil Warnock. The passing has been very evident especially since the return. Hopefully they can push on next season and put up a strong challenge for promotion.

Harris will need to invest during the summer to improve the team further. I believe we need a few more players to help us challenge for promotion. Signing a right-back will be key and more depth behind talisman Lee Tomlin. When Tomlin isn’t playing they struggle for creativity. Overall I believe Cardiff fans can definitely be excited for next season.

As for the other semi-final, like I have said Brentford will be facing Fulham in the final after coming from behind to beat Swansea 3-2 on aggregate.

After losing the first leg 1-0 at the Liberty Stadium, Brentford completely turned the game around after 15 minutes through goals from Ollie Watkins and Emiliano Marcondes. Watkins’ goal was his 26th of the campaign. They added another just after half time through Bryan Mbeumo.

Rhian Brewster pulled a goal back for Swansea in the 78th minute but they were unable to find another to level the game. Therefore Brentford progressed to the final where it will be 3rd against 4th. I am sure it will be an excellent game between two very good teams.

As for Cardiff there is plenty to look forward next season.

Cardiff City 0-2 Fulham

Neeskens Kebano celebrates his stoppage-time free-kick

The Bluebirds face a massive challenge to find a way of progressing to the play-off fins after being outclassed by Fulham in the first leg of the semi-finals.

Second half goals from Josh Onomah and Neeskens Kebano gave Fulham the victory in a game which overall they dominated and Cardiff failed to really lay a glove on them.

It was a tightly contested first half in which City had started the better team. They looked strong up until the first drinks break but failed to capitalise. Robert Glatzel came very close to giving Cardiff the lead but following Leandro Bacuna’s effort, which was pushed out by Fulham goalkeeper Marek Rodak, Michael Hector did excellently to prevent Glatzel from tapping in. Glatzel also had an effort saved following some nice build-up play.

However, following the break Fulham started to get a hold of the game and dominate possession. Alex Smithies had to react quickly to save from Onomah’s effort at the back post. Tom Cairney also game close, firing against the post from range.

Fulham continued to dominate the ball in the second, with City hardly touching the ball. Fulham took the lead in the 49th minute through Onomah, who turned away from Marlon Pack with ease and then strolled past Sean Morrison and Curtis Nelson before finishing past Smithies. It was very poor defending, especially by Pack.

Cardiff struggled to threaten in attack and weren’t able to get the ball off their opponents who just passed the ball around them comfortably. There was a slight improvement following the substitutions in the 70th minute, with Josh Murphy, Will Vaulks and Danny Ward coming on for Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Junior Hoilett and Glatzel but the players looked tired and struggled to find the energy which was required.

Former Bluebird Bobby Decordova-Reid came close for Fulham, firing just over the bar, before Kebano doubled the lead in stoppage time. The decision to award the free-kick was very debatable, with Cairney running into Morrison. The referee thought that Morrison had blocked Cairney intentionally therefore he gave the free-kick.

There was another time in the game where Lee Tomlin was similarly blocked but the referee didn’t award a foul. That was a clear example of the consistency which referee’s in the Football League lack. Manager Neil Harris was understandably very annoyed about that decision and felt that his side had been let down the the referee.

As for the free-kick, it was a brilliant strike by Kebano. He managed to get it over the wall with enough dip that it went into the corner, leaving Smithies with no chance. There was only a couple of minutes left when the goal was scored which makes it very frustrating for the Bluebirds and what Harris described as a ‘real kick in the nuts’.

It is going to be very tough to come back from this. It would’ve been challenging if it was one goal but two is going to take a huge effort. But, Cardiff have defied the odds to make the play-offs so no one can write them off yet. There is still hope, however slim that hope is.

Looking at the performance, it was very disappointing during the second half, with the energy levels lower than normal. That could be down to fatigue from all the games that they have played since the restart. Fulham deserved the victory and we will have to be much better in the second leg.

The second leg is on Thursday at Craven Cottage with kick-off at 19:45.

In the other semi-final, Swansea took on Brentford at the Liberty Stadium with Swansea surprisingly coming out on top. Andre Ayew scored the winner with a very good finish. He had earlier missed a penalty after a foul on Rhian Brewster.

The challenge which lead to Rico Henry being sent off

The goal came following a red card for Rico Henry which was never a sending off. He was sent off for a slide tackle on Connor Roberts where he won the ball. It was a strong challenge but his studs weren’t that high and he got enough of the ball for it not to even be a foul. However, since the game the red card has been overturned and he will be able to play in the second leg which takes place on Wednesday at Griffin Park. It is still in the balance and it is certainly not over yet.

One thing is certain and that is there will be plenty of excitement to come and there is a lot to look forward to.

Cardiff finish in the play-offs following a breathtaking final day of the Championship- Cardiff City 3-0 Hull City

Captain Sean Morrison heads in Cardiff’s second goal

A comfortable victory for the Bluebirds over Hull meant a fifth place finish in the league and the chance to get promoted to the Premier League through the play-offs.

Going into the final day, City needed a point to seal a place in the top six. Swansea were three points behind and Nottingham Forest were level on points. However, remarkably, the two teams from South Wales, Cardiff and Swansea, finished fifth and sixth respectively with Forest missing out on the play-offs.

As for the Cardiff game it was pretty comfortable throughout. First half goals from Junior Hoilett and Sean Morrison put the Bluebirds firmly in control, with Danny Ward coming off the bench to add a third.

Cardiff started the game strongly with Robert Glatzel having a couple of close effort. The first was a long-range strike which was saved by Hull goalkeeper George Long. The second was from a closer distance which he fired wide from an angle.

The first goal came in the 20th minute through Hoilett. He received the ball from a Joe Bennett header, before driving down the wing without being closed down and firing into the far corner. It was a very good finish.

Morrison doubled the lead in the 34th minute. It was very poor defending from Hull, leaving Morrison unmarked and he took advantage by heading high into the goal to double the lead.

There wasn’t much action during the second half with Cardiff managing the game well. Hull came close once but Morrison managed to block James Scott’s effort. It was brilliant defending from the skipper. Following that, Alex Smithies saved well from Mallik Wilks to preserve the clean sheet.

To round off the scoring, substitute Ward scored past Long after the keeper’s save from Bennett’s free-kick. The result was hardly in doubt throughout the whole game.

Hull struggled to find an intensity to threaten Cardiff, most probably because were realistically already relegated due to their inferior goal difference. That made it even more comfortable for the Bluebirds.

Following all the results, City will face fourth-placed Fulham, who finished the regular season with a 1-1 draw at Wigan. At the moment Wigan will be playing in League One alongside Hull next season unless they appeal successfully against their 12 point deduction for going into asministration. The other club to be relegated are Charlton who suffered a 4-0 loss at champions Leeds. It is harsh on Charlton who have had to try and overcome many obstacles this season, including plenty of injuries and losing their star man for the games after the break.

If the 12 point deduction to Wigan remains, Barnsley will be safe, having surprisingly won 2-1 at Brentford, who could’ve gone up automatically with a victory because of West Brom’s 2-2 draw at home to QPR. Barnsley finished one point above Charlton, while Brentford were two points adrift of West Brom and will face Swansea in the play-off semi-finals.

West Brom managed to hold on to second place to go up automatically, even though they didn’t manage to hit the ground running following the restart. Brentford has the opportunity to overtake them, but lost their last two games against Stoke and Barnsley and will have to settle for a place in the play-offs.

Before the match day it would’ve been sensible to predict that Nottingham Forest would’ve at least got something of their game at home to Stoke. But, what followed was extraordinary. Stoke had been fighting relegation for the majority of the season while on the other hand there was talk at one point of Forest challenging for automatic promotion.

But, in the end Stoke won 4-1 which coincided with Swansea’s 4-1 victory at Reading which meant that Forest fell out of the top six and Swansea replaced them. There needed to be a five goal swing for this to happen and that is what happened. It shows how competitive the Championship is, that anyone can beat anyone on their day and that nothing is guaranteed.

Going back to the bottom of the table and Luton Town, it has been an incredible effort for them to stay up. Nathan Jones returned to the club during the break and he has turned it around for them. Their final game was a 3-2 win over Blackburn at home. They have collected 16 points off their final 9 games to pull off what seemed impossible at one point.

Rounding up the other results by starting at St Andrews and Derby’s 3-1 victory over Birmingham. Birmingham finish two points above the relegation zone after a disappointing season while Derby finish in 10th. Star youngster Jude Bellingham played his final game for boyhood club Birmingham as he has completed a transfer to Borussia Dortmund. He was very emotional following the game.

Bristol City and Preston, who at one point were challenging for the top six, played out a 1-1 draw at Ashton Gate. Preston finish in 9th with Bristol City in 12th.

Millwall finished only two points off the play-offs following a 4-1 win over managerless Huddersfield, who have since appointed Leeds United assistant Carlos Corberan as their new head coach.

To finish it off, Middlesbrough secured their safety by beating Sheffield Wednesday 2-1 at Hillsborough.

It was a final day full of excitement, which was expected. The Championship is always full of action and this certainly proves that.

To finish the season there will be the play-offs. The first legs will be on the 26th and 27th of June and the second legs on the 29th and 30th of June. They are Swansea against Brentford and Cardiff against Fulham, with the possibility of a South Wales derby in the final. That would be nail-biting and probably too much to take for both sets of fans.

We will wait and see what happens in what should be a gripping play-offs.

Massive win for the Bluebirds over Derby- Cardiff City 2-1 Derby County

Cardiff’s Lee Tomlin celebrates his winner through showing support for ‘Black Lives Matter’

Lee Tomlin’s second-half goal gave Cardiff victory over Derby to end the run of consecutive defeats and to boost their play-off hopes.

It was a tough game against a strong Derby side and City went through periods with very little possession of the ball. However, it was Cardiff who took the lead through Junior Hoilett.

It came from Jason Knight’s very poor back-pass which was too short for the goalkeeper and allowed Hoilett to pounce, before rounding the keeper and slotting in to put City in front. Cardiff had been the better team from the start and deserved to be in front.

But, Derby gained control of the game soon after the goal and started to dictate the play. They managed to equalise in the 30th minute through Knight, who made amends for his shocking mistake for the opening goal.

It was very poor defending from Cardiff. Both Sean Morrison and Joe Bennett went to tackle Louie Sibley which left Knight free and Sibley was able to play the ball through for Knight to score.

From then on, Derby dominated possession and City struggled to have a touch of the ball. It was a tough watch for a period of the game. Whenever Cardiff got the ball they just gave it straight back to a Derby player. Derby weren’t really threatening but whenever they got near the box, the defenders hesitated to make a challenge.

Cardiff managed to get though to half-tome without conceding and managed to wrestle some sort of control back by the end of the half. Hoilett had a good effort saved as the Bluebirds ended the half strongly.

City were solid during the second half and managed to control the game. There weren’t many clear chances for either side until Tomlin fires in the winner. It came following a mistake from a Wayne Rooney. Tomlin tackled Rooney, who was too relaxed on the ball, and ran with the ball before finishing well into the bottom corner. It was a very good finish.

They had the chance to seal the win but Joe Ralls headed against the bar from substitute Danny Ward’s cross. It was a great chance to make sure of the victory but Ralls failed to take advantage. However, City held on for the win.

The defeat for Derby all but ends their play-off hopes as they are six points off Cardiff with an inferior goal difference. There would have to be a dramatic turnaround for them to make the top six.

On the other hand, the win for Cardiff strengthens their place in the top six. Following all the results from the midweek games there is a two-point cushion to Millwall in seventh. Millwall are still firmly in contention after overcoming Blackburn 1-0 through Mason Bennett’s goal. This result meant that Blackburn cannot mathematically finish in the top six.

It looks like it is a three-horse race between Cardiff, Millwall and Swansea. Swansea drew 2-2 at Nottingham Forest. They were twice pegged back by Sammy Ameobi after Rhian Brewster and then Andre Ayew had put them in the lead. They are now three points off the Bluebirds. Preston have dropped to five points behind City after losing 1-0 to automatic promotion hopefuls Brentford with Ollie Watkins scoring his 25th goal of the campaign.

Bristol City were frustrated by Stoke City with Danny Batth’s second half goal cancelling out Filip Benkovic’s opener to bring the Potters very close to safety.

It is still very tight in the race for the final place in the play-offs. The last two games for Cardiff will be tough against two teams are fighting against relegation. The first of those is a trip to Middlesbrough on Saturday. Boro are very close to being safe as they are five points clear of the relegation zone. Neil Warnock has had a good impact since becoming their manager and he will certainly provide a stern test for his former club. We will have to be at our best to get a positive result.

The following Wednesday the Bluebirds will take on Hull at the Cardiff City Stadium on the final day of the season. If City win both of those games they will end up in the top six. It is in their hands but they will need to be at their best.

As I have said before it will be an exciting end to the season as it always is in the Championship.

It will also be exciting in the race for automatic promotion. Following yesterday’s results, Brentford are only a point behind West Brom. Brentford beat Preston while West Brom drew 0-0 at home to fourth-placed Fulham who can still mathematically catch West Brom. The other team who occupy a place in the top six are Nottingham Forest.

We have a lot to look forward to in the next week and there is definitely a lot to play for.

Cardiff fall to back-to back losses with defeat at Fulham- Fulham 2-0 Cardiff City

Fulham’s Alexander Mitrovic celebrates scoring the penalty which opened the scoring

For the second time this week Cardiff lost in the Championship, denting their play-off hopes in the process, with the race for the top six tightening up.

After a disappointing defeat against Blackburn on Tuesday, the Bluebirds would’ve been hoping to bounce back at Craven Cottage and bring back the momentum they had straight after the return.

However, a first-half penalty from Alexander Mitrovic and second-half strike from Josh Onomah won the game for Fulham and kept their faint hopes of automatic promotion alive.

There were a few contentious decisions during the game. The decision to award a penalty against Dion Sanderson for fouling Mitrovic was debatable and amany would argue that it was soft. But, Cardiff were hugely fortunate when the ball clearly struck Curtis Nelson’s hand in the box and it should’ve been a penalty for Fulham.

There was also a couple of moments where the referee could’ve given red cards to Fulham players. Michael Hector appeared to strike Callum Paterson in the face, but he was only given a yellow card for the offence. There was also a foul on Nathaniel Mendez-Laing which could’ve been seen as a red card. Overall the referee had a poor game.

Even though many would disagree with the referee’s decisions, Fulham did deserve the victory on the whole. Cardiff did come close through Joe Ralls in the first half who’s excellent volley hit the cross bar. But, City struggled to be threatening enough to create enough chances and break through.

Fulham created more chances and sealed the win when Onomah finished well into the bottom corner in the 66th minute. They’d come close a few times before that and even though there was still time left, it didn’t look like City were going to be able to find that finishing touch.

We will need to make sure that we return to our best when Derby come to the Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday. That will be a massive game and is must-win. It will be difficult to find momentum without a victory in that game.

We were lucky to remain in the top six after the weekend’s results. Going into the matchday Swansea were only a point behind with Preston and Derby three points behind.

But, former Swansea player Pablo Hernandez scored an 89th minute winner against his former club to win the game for Leeds and dent his former club’s play-off hopes, while putting Leeds a step closer to returning to the top flight. They now only need four more points to seal promotion.

Derby faced Brentford, who still have hopes of automatic promotion. Saïd Benrahma inspired the Bees to a 3-1 victory at Pride Park, scoring two goals, including a wonderful second. After West Brom’s 1-1 draw at Blackburn, Brentford are only three points off the Baggies in second with a superior goal difference.

Preston, who were only three points off the Bluebirds going into the weekend, hosted Nottingham Forest, who occupy a place in the top six. They drew 1-1, with Jayden Stockley cancelling out an early Lewis Grabban penalty. After that result, Preston cut the gap to two points to sixth. Forest remain in fifth, six points clear of seventh.

Millwall have climbed above Derby into ninth after beating Hull City at the KCOM Stadium through Ryan Leonard’s second minute strike. They are on the same points as Preston, two points off Cardiff.

After looking out of play-off contention following defeat to Cardiff a couple of games ago, Bristol City have turned their form around with back-to-back wins and are now only three points off Cardiff in sixth, albeit with an inferior goal difference.

Blackburn have also given themselves a chance, cutting the gap to four points after beating the Bluebirds and drawing against automatic promotion chasing West Brom.

It is certainly going to be an exciting finish to see who finishes in the tops six and gives themselves a chance to get promoted to the Premier League. Forest look likely to finish in the play-offs, so it is realistically seven teams fighting for sixth. There is four points between those seven teams.

The Championship is a crazy league and always has its thrills and spills. It will be intriguing to see who can deal with the pressure in the final three games. There are game between those around the play-off places which makes it even more exciting.

One of those games between teams in the play-off hunt is the game mentioned earlier between Cardiff and Derby on Tuesday. Hopefully Lee Tomlin and Robert Glatzel will be fit enough to start the Bluebirds to provide the much-needed fire power in attack.

It will be a tough game against Derby who have a good blend of youth and experience, lead by veteran Wayne Rooney who has made a big impact since joining in January as a player-coach.

We will look forward to that game on Tuesday and hope for a positive result.