Cardiff City 1-2 Burnley: Report, Ratings & Reaction as Clarets Steal Three Points in Wales
Burnley were able to secure their first away win of the season after defeating Cardiff City 2-1 on Sunday afternoon.
Cardiff created the best opportunities during a very quiet opening first half with the Burnley post and Joe Hart keeping the home side at bay.
The Bluebirds would live to regret those missed chances as Johann Berg Gudmunsson rose above Greg Cunningham to head beyond Neil Etheridge at his near post, putting the away side into the lead on the 50 minute mark.
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That lead lasted just ten minutes before Josh Murphy stroked home a cool finish from just inside the 18 yard box to bring his side level, which was ample reward for a stellar performance from the young winger.
Hart produced some heroics in goal to keep out Murphy from doubling his tally before Sam Vokes won the game for his side with a well taken header fifteen minutes from time.
CARDIFF CITY
Key Talking Point
In an ideal world, once you have played seven matches in the league you would have a strong idea of what your best starting XI is and what sort of formation they'd be best suited to.
Neil Warnock opted to rotate his side again and, unfortunately for Cardiff, it didn't quite work out.
It was a reasonable performance by all means, but the Bluebirds needed to kill the game off in the first half when they had the chance.
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This was a game they had to at least get a point out of, especially considering how poor Burnley were on the day.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: Etheridge (5); Manga (5), Morrison (6), Bamba (6), Cunningham (6); Camarasa (6), Ralls (6), Arter (6), Murphy (8*), Paterson (4); Zohore (4).
Substitutes: Ward (5), Madine (N/A).
Star Man - If any Cardiff player can walk away with his head held high, then it can be young winger Josh Murphy.
It was no coincidence that every promising Cardiff move seemed to involve him in one capacity or another and he picked up his first Premier League goal with a well-taken finish that any number of world class strikers would have been proud of.
Worst Player - After Neil Warnock criticised him for a 'lack of hunger' Kenneth Zohore had a lot to prove as he led the line for Cardiff.
He looked off the pace throughout his time on the pitch and failed to provide an outlet for his teammates - one of whom was Callum Paterson, who also didn't cover himself in glory.
BURNLEY
Key Talking Point
Burnley can count themselves very lucky to be coming away with all three points from this one.
Cardiff were much the better side, particularly in the first half, but Burnley's resolute defending proved enough to earn them the win.
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Considering how poorly they played, the win doesn't do a lot to suggest that the Clarets will come anywhere close to replicating their heroics of the 2017/18 season.
However, it was the first away win of the season for Sean Dyche's men, meaning they find themselves slowly crawling away from the foot of the table.
Player Ratings
Starting XI: Hart (8*); Lowton (6), Mee (7), Tarkowski (6), Taylor (6); Cork (6), Westwood (6), Lennon (5), Gudmonsson (7); Vydra (5), Vokes (6).
Substitutes: Long (6), Wood (6).
Star Man - Joe Hart wasn't able to keep a clean sheet but that doesn't detract away from how well he played in this one.
The ex-Manchester City man kept his side in contention with a number of fine saves, the best of which came against Josh Murphy just moments before Burnley scored the winner.
Worst Player - It was more indicative of Burnley's ineffective tactics, but Aaron Lennon simply couldn't get into the game out wide.
He found himself being dominated by the likes of Bruno Ecuele Manga and wasn't able to utilise his pace to get in behind the Cardiff backline. An afternoon to forget for the winger.
Looking Ahead
Cardiff have the daunting task of an away fixture against Tottenham next Saturday whilst Burnley host lowly Huddersfield at Turf Moor.
Following that, both sides will have a week off for the international break.
