AFC Bournemouth
AFC Bournemouth will be looking to return to winning ways when they host Championship rivals Cardiff City at Vitality Stadium on Wednesday (7.45pm kick-off).
The Cherries suffered a 2-1 defeat at QPR on Saturday, a reverse which allowed Cardiff to close the gap to three points following their 4-0 win over Preston North End.
Under recently-appointed manager Mick McCarthy, who replaced Neil Harris in January, the Bluebirds have enjoyed an upturn in fortunes.
The former Millwall, Sunderland, Wolves, Ipswich and Republic of Ireland boss has presided over a seven-match unbeaten run which has included five successive victories.
McCarthy opened his tenure with back-to-back draws against Barnsley (2-2) and Millwall (1-1) before Cardiff saw off Bristol City (2-0), Rotherham (2-1), Coventry (3-1), Luton (2-0) and Preston (4-0).
Kieffer Moore netted his 14th goal of the season against Preston in a game which saw Cardiff goalkeeper Dillion Phillips save two penalties.
Harris parted company with the Welsh outfit following a run of six successive defeats in all competitions, Cardiff having climbed from 15th to seventh since McCarthy was appointed.
Ahead of the clash, afcb.co.uk caught up with Rob Phillips who covers the fortunes of the Bluebirds in his capacity as BBC Wales football correspondent.
CARDIFF CITY IN PROFILE
Manager: Mick McCarthy (appointed January 2021)
Club captain: Sean Morrison (pictured above)
Last game: Cardiff City 4-0 Preston North End (Championship)
Leading league goalscorer 2020/21: Kieffer Moore (14)
League position: Seventh
Past six league results: DWWWWW
afcb.co.uk: How has Mick McCarthy changed things since his arrival?
RP: When you speak to the players, they say their confidence is back. It’s that intangible thing. There’s no rhyme or reason for what’s happened but it has happened.
He’s changed the system. He plays with three centre-backs and two wing-backs, which has worked really well.
Crucially, he’s got the front three – notably Kieffer Moore but also Harry Wilson and either Sheyi Ojo or Josh Murphy – dovetailing really well.
It’s a system they have learned to play really well and, as good as they are, the key thing is they score goals.
Kieffer Moore has hit really good form and that says everything. He’s got the best out of him, better than Neil Harris did.
He’s got the front three working well and they are solid at the back.
Whatever he has done in the dressing room, the players say it’s about confidence and an arm around the shoulder sometimes, it has worked. He’s brought his home-spun Yorkshire wit to it all and it’s just clicked ever so well.
afcb.co.uk: Could you have predicted this turnaround?
RP: When Mick McCarthy (pictured above) was announced as manager, there was a lot of opposition among Cardiff City fans, certainly the noisy ones anyway. Whether there was a silent majority happy to give him a chance, you don’t know.
But in his first press conference, he took a lot of the criticism away. He said he was here for the remainder of the season, no more at the moment.
He said if it worked out and the club wanted him to stay, he would talk about it then. He said if it didn’t work out, he would have enjoyed his time and would move on.
The reason they brought him in was because they were spooked by the league table. They were only nine points above the relegation zone, they were on a downward spiral and had lost six games in a row.
Vincent Tan puts a lot of money into the club and he cannot afford for them to go down. When they brought in Mick McCarthy, they thought he would keep them up and give them some thinking time to contemplate whether they should go for a young coach and build a young squad.
What McCarthy has done has been remarkable. I asked him before the last game whether he had held talks about the future and he said he hadn’t.
He said it would be great if he could keep doing well and if the club said ‘no thanks’ at the end of the season, the offers would come in from elsewhere.
He’s got himself in a great position and, most of all, he’s got Cardiff City where they probably would have expected to be around when the season started, particularly after their good run to the play-offs last season.
afcb.co.uk: Dillon Phillips (pictured above) saved two penalties in a minute against Preston – tell us about that?
RP: The first penalty was awarded against Harry Wilson for a shove and Phillips saved Paul Gallagher’s spot kick.
Then, as Gallagher looked to follow up, Aden Flint was judged to have brought him down so the referee gave another penalty.
They changed the penalty-taker and Ched Evans took the second one. He went the other way and Phillips saved that one as well.
At the time, it was 2-0 to Cardiff with about 20 minutes to go. If it had gone to 2-1, I think all bets might have been off.
That was the turning point and they went on to win 4-0. It was unbelievable and something I had never seen before.
afcb.co.uk: Will Vaulks says Mick McCarthy has made Cardiff City a 'horrible' team to play against – do you agree?
RP: I think he’s right and that is the big difference. They are horrible to play against. They don’t give you a minute on the ball, they defend solidly and have three big centre-backs who are keeping most things out at the moment.
Teams haven’t been able to play through them as often as they were previously and they’ve got goalscorers up top.
afcb.co.uk: Who is Cardiff’s one to watch?
RP: The easy choice would be Kieffer Moore (pictured above). He’s been outstanding. He’s more than just a target man. He’s clever on the ball and is quicker than people think. He wins his fair share of headers and everything revolves around him.
He’s the one to watch but I would also pick out right-back Perry Ng (pictured below) who they signed from Crewe in January. He looks like he’s been playing in the Championship for his whole career. He’s settled in really well.
afcb.co.uk: Are any first-choice players either injured or suspended against the Cherries?
RP: I think Joe Ralls will still be missing and Lee Tomlin has a long-term injury. Junior Hoilett will be available for selection.
afcb.co.uk: What’s your score prediction?
RP: Cardiff would love to get a win to cut the gap entirely on Bournemouth but I’m going with a 1-1 draw.
You can follow Rob on Twitter – @robphillipshere
Officials: Gavin Ward (referee), Michael George (assistant), Robert Hyde (assistant), Daniel Lamport (fourth official).
