The Bluebirds take on bottom-of-the-table Barnsley tomorrow
AS it happened, the post-Kieffer Moore era began before the Cardiff striker had even left.
The Bluebirds’ 2-1 win against a Nottingham Forest side who were pushing for the play-offs on Sunday was completed without top scorer Moore who departed for Bournemouth 24-hours later.
Buoyed by a host of new loan signings, including Jordan Hugill, Cody Drameh, Tommy Doyle and Aflie Doughty, the Bluebirds were a team transformed, and outclassed the Reds in every area of the pitch.
Manager Steve Morison is hoping his side can replicate the energy of the last match in a bumper week for the team, who face Barnsley tomorrow and Premier League giants Liverpool on Sunday in the FA Cup.
The manager has already brought in cover for Moore, albeit temporarily, signing striker Uche Ikpeazu on a loan from Middlesbrough.
Moore departs as Cardiff’s top goal scorer this season with five goals in 24 matches, and City fans will hope that whoever starts up front at Oakwell can soon surpass that total.
Speaking ahead of Wednesday’s trip to Barnsley, Morison said: “From our point of view, we need people who want to be here and want to fight, who make us better as a group and can push us on.
We’ve got two huge games either side of Liverpool. After that, we can really start looking to where we want to get to and try to get ourselves up the table.
“We’ve put Sunday’s game to bed, and we’re fully concentrated on Barnsley now. Let’s get a good result, and then we can enjoy the weekend.”
After the weekend’s unexpected win, City fans are confident that they will avoid a slip-up against Barnsley who brought in two deadline day loan signings to bolster their midfield.
Domingos Quina from Watford and Amine Bassi from French side, Metz, join a Barnsley team that is low in confidence and struggling for goals, although their 0-1 defeat at home to Bournemouth on Saturday was a much-improved performance compared with previous games.
Cardiff City fan Christopher Alexander, 62, said “We looked like a different outfit on Sunday. Fitter, stronger and quicker. Moore is a big loss, but that loss also gives others the opportunity to shine.
“Barnsley better look out; Forest are a better side than them and we made them look ordinary.”
