Rudy Gestede … learning?
Without playing well for over an hour Cardiff City managed to come back from a one goal deficit to defeat the luckless Tractor Boys in Ipswich last Saturday. They won for only the second time at Portman Road in over 60 years. Winning when not playing well, especially on the road and laying old bogeys, are all positive signs of a team on the ascension. The omens are good.
Two Heidar Helguson goals sealed the win albeit with a fair slice of poor Ipswich defending in the process.
As the Bluebirds now head into the international break there will be time to heal for Craig Bellamy and one or two others. Malky Mackay will be sure to work on further consolidating his defensive and midfield strategies and the movement from the players up front. I see no reason for the team not to come out of the break stronger than they went in.
There’s not a single Cardiff City player in the current Wales squad. Goalkeeper David Marshall is on duty with Scotland but unlikely to play. Aron Gunnarsson will captain Iceland but City teammate and weekend hero Heidar Helguson has not been called to duty as the north Atlantic island team travels to Albania. Etien Velikonja will be away with Slovenia but those are the only Cardiff players likely to miss training for the next week and more before the Championship game at Nottingham Forest.
Malky Mackay is sure to deposit Craig Bellamy back into the starting line-up as he regains fitness and trains in readiness for the Forest trip. Tommy Smith and Jordon Mutch should also be ready to train. I would guess Gunnarsson will play both of Icelands games, they return home to play Switzerland after the Albanian trip. He will find himself on the bench at Forest I’m sure. Mackay will work with his ‘at home’ outfield players leaving only ‘keeper Marshall to insert back into the line-up. The manager will be polishing and preparing his team for all the upcoming games ahead and for Forest in particular.
Barring injury, expect the usual defensive five with Bellamy and Helguson up top. The midfield will be Whittingham, Mutch (for Gunnarsson), Noone and Smith. As all these players are in town we should expect a solid and well rehearsed performance against Forest. Sean O’Driscoll’s team are still trying to find their way and I believe we will be too strong and too classy for the former European Champions.
Etien Velikonja will be away with Slovenia allowing Rudy Gestede another opportunity to show his strength and potential in training. Always a physical handful the Frenchman still has to prove he can play with his feet and with his head, or rather his brain. Injuries haven’t helped him but this next few months will be critical to his development and assessment. Whether Cardiff need to buy another striker, and I think they will, in the January transfer window may well depend on his form and fitness by then. He seems to have Mackay’s confidence which is the important thing.
Helguson will have to continue to pop up with all important goals and Bellamy must increase his strike rate to the level of his creativity for others. I believe he can and he will, injury permitting.
Connolly, Hudson and Turner are as good as three center-backs in the division but there are still doubts about the defensive capabilities of Taylor. By continually playing he learns on the job and hopefully gets better. SuprKev McNaughton is what he is. Sometimes under par but always fully committed. These are the two worriesome positions for me.
The international breaks are a blessing to some and a curse to others, we’ll have to wait and see what this one becomes but the omens are good.
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