WEST BROMWICH ALBION v CARDIFF CITY
Barclays Premier League Saturday 29th March 2014,
3:00pm The Hawthorns
MATCH
NOTES
The game will be the 54th league & cup meeting
between the Baggies and Cardiff City. Albion currently lead the way in the victory
stakes with 22 compared to the Bluebirds' 17.
The match will be the first time the two clubs have
met at The Hawthorns in top-flight action since March 1962.
The Baggies' last game on March 29 took place in
2008 when they beat Colchester United 4-3 in a thrilling Championship clash at
The Hawthorns.
Cardiff's last game on this date also came in the
Championship in 2008 when they beat Southampton 1-0 at Ninian Park.
Albion have won just two out of their last 21
league and cup games.
City have lost their last eight Premier League away
games.
Albion's last six games: Hull
City (A) 0-2;
Swansea City (A) 2-1; Manchester United (H) 0-3;
Fulham (H) 1-1; Chelsea (H) 1-1; Crystal Palace (A) 1-3.
City's last six games: Liverpool (H) 3-6, Everton
(A) 1-2; Fulham (H) 3-1; Tottenham Hotspur (A) 0-1; Hull City (H) 0-4; Wigan
Athletic (H, FAC) 1-2.
TEAM
NEWS
Albion
Baggies’ boss Pepe Mel is boosted by the return of Morgan
Amalfitano and Diego Lugano following their recent knee injuries. Mel will also
have Gareth McAuley available despite the defender limping off during last
weekend’s defeat at Hull
City.
Victor Anichebe faces a late fitness test on his hamstring
problem but Billy Jones, Chris Brunt and Claudio Yacob all remain sidelined due to injury.
Jonas Olsson serves the second game of his two match
suspension for reaching ten bookings for the season.
Squad from:
Foster, Myhill, Reid, Ridgewell, McAuley,
Dawson, Morrison, Sinclair,
Dorrans, Mulumbu, Gera, Sessegnon, Anichebe, Vydra, Berahino, Bifouma, O'Neil, D
Daniels, Amalfitano, Lugano.
Cardiff City
City winger Craig Noone could return after missing last
week’s defeat at home to
Liverpool.
Squad from:
Marshall, Lewis, Turner, Theophile-Catherine, Fabio, John,
Caulker, Campbell, Daehli, Medel, Eikrem, Mutch, Noone, Kim, Jones, Cala,
Bellamy, Zaha, Taylor, Whittingham, Gunnarsson, Cowie, McNaughton.
QUOTES
Baggies' boss Pepe Mel:
“We’ve been looking at the errors from the
Hull game. If you look at the
video it shows within two seconds of kick-off we lost the ball. The way we’re
approaching the game tomorrow is to be defensively strong. It’s been quite a
long time since West Brom have kept a clean sheet. We’ve been conceding some very early goals and
that means we have to put a lot of effort in.
“In a lot of the games at home we have gone in at half-time
1-0 down and that means we need to put in extra effort. That’s why we have
highlighted the kick-off against
Hull. You simply cannot lose the
ball in the first moments of the game - it was a counter-attack and a cross,
which nearly produced a goal. This is exactly why we are working hard to make
sure this does not happen.
“We’re very capable of creating scoring opportunities and
we’re convinced, if we don’t concede, we’ll be able to win the game. It’s
obvious if we concede fewer goals we’ll have greater opportunity because we’re a
team from midfield going forward that create opportunities and are successful in
that.
“The fans have been behind us all the time. The other night
we had a meal at the club and many people attended this. They’re all excited by
the prospect of us going on and being successful. They want to know about the
future and what the spirit is like within the camp. They also trust my work so
for me it is a real responsibility. I particularly liked the curry but I’m more
of a wine man when drinking with my meal. But the main thing is this meeting
gave me an injection of enthusiasm. I’m indebted to them, they’ve given me an
awful lot and I still haven’t delivered anything. My biggest concern is to
ensure everyone goes home happy from the
Cardiff game.”
www.wba.co.uk
City boss Ole
Gunnar Solskjaer:
”The next two games will be
massive because they're against the two teams directly around us. It's going to
be a vital ten days coming up.
“Saturday is a massive game for both teams. We go there to win the game but we
can't be as open as we were against Liverpool, although we’ll of course want to
push forward when we get the opportunity. We're concentrating on ourselves,
making sure we get what we need.
“We can get the points and results we need, we all share that belief; we know
what we have to do. Looking at the next two games and then to April it's a month
that we have the chance to get some good points from.”
www.cardiffcityfc.co.uk
MATCH
ODDS
Result
Albion Win: 8/11, Cardiff City Win: 18/5, Draw:
12/5.
First Goalscorer Albion:
Anichebe 6/1, Vydra 13/2, Thievy 13/2, Berahino 7/1, Sessegnon 7/1, Sinclair
11/1, Morrison 12/1, Dorrans 12/1, Gera 16/1, Amalfitano 20/1, Dawson 20/1,
Mulumbu 20/1, McAuley 25/1, D Daniels 33/1, Reid 33/1.
Cardiff City: Campbell 7/1, Jones 15/2, Berget 9/1,
Bellamy 9/1, Mutch 10/1, Zaha 11/1, Noone 12/1, Daehli 14/1, Whittingham 14/1,
Cala 16/1, Bo-Kyung 20/1, Eikrem 20/1, Gunnarsson 25/1, Cowie 25/1, Caulker
25/1, Turner 33/1, John 33/1, Medel 33/1, Fabio 33/1.
www.williamhill.com
REFEREE
Michael Oliver
(Northumberland)
Oliver has refereed Albion three times previously this season
- the 2-1 win over Manchester United at Old Trafford in September, the 2-2 draw
with Aston Villa at The Hawthorns in November and the 1-1 draw at home to
Everton in January.
The Northumberland official took charge of four Albion games last
season - the 2-1 defeat at home to Liverpool in the Capital One Cup in
September, the 2-1 win over Chelsea at The Hawthorns in November, the 2-1 defeat
at Everton in January and the 5-5 draw with Manchester United in May.
Oliver has refereed one Cardiff City game this
season - the 0-0 draw at Stoke City in December.
So far this season Oliver has issued 117 yellow
cards and four red cards in the 31 games he has officiated.
A full run-down of Oliver's history refereeing the
Baggies can be found here
TICKET INFORMATION
Seats remain on sale to season ticket holders, members and home supporters with a booking history. Tickets
are priced £25 adults, £20 seniors, £15 under-21s/students
and £10 under-17s.
The Smethwick End is sold out but availability
remains in all other stands.
WEATHER FORECAST
Sunny, 16°C.
FIXTURE HISTORY
Albion have met Cardiff City 53 times
previously in competitive football. The Baggies
currently have 22 wins compared to City's 17.
The first meeting of the two clubs came in
a First Division game at The Hawthorns on October 22, 1921, the match finishing
2-2, Howard Gregory and Andrew Smith scoring the
Albion goals.
Albion's biggest win against the Bluebirds
came in November 1953 when they beat the Welsh side 6-1 at The Hawthorns, Ronnie
Allen hit four of the hosts' goals. Albion recorded three big wins at City's
former ground Ninian Park - a 6-3 victory in 1930 was followed in April 1948 by
a 5-0 success. More recently, in July 1998,
Albion travelled to Wales for a pre-season friendly and came
home with another 5-0 victory, Italian trialists Marco Nappi and Mario
Bortolazzi amongst the goals.
Cardiff's biggest win against Albion is
4-2, achieved twice, both times at The Hawthorns. The first came in 1923 in a
league game at The Hawthorns when Len Davies scored all four City goals. In
September 2007 Cardiff repeated the scoreline in a League Cup 3rd round tie.
The two clubs also met five times in wartime football,
Albion winning twice, one of them a 6-3 victory in a Football League South game
in August 1941.
Albion have lost just two of the last sixteen league meetings between the clubs.
MATCH
HIGHLIGHTS
(Click on game to view)
Saturday 7 January 2012 - Albion 4-2 Cardiff City - FA Cup 3rd Round - The Hawthorns
Tuesday 20 February 2007 - Albion 1-0 Cardiff City - League Championship - The Hawthorns
LAST MEETING AT THE HAWTHORNS
Albion
4-2 Cardiff City FA Cup 3rd Round Saturday 7th January 2012,
3:00pm
Albion: Foster; Jones, McAuley (Tamas 75), Dawson,
Shorey; Jara Reyes (Tchoyi 60), Thorne (Fortune 60), Dorrans, Morrison; Cox,
Odemwingie. Subs not used: Fulop (gk), Mantom, Mattock, Wood.
Goalscorers:
Odemwingie 7, Cox 33, 61 & 90
Booked:
Shorey 33 (unsporting
behaviour), Morrison 45+1 (foul)
Cardiff City: Heaton; Quinn, Keinan (Wharton 70),
Blake, Naylor; McPhail, Gerrard, Kiss,
Conway;
Gestede (Mason 42), Earnshaw. Subs not used: Marshall (gk), Gyepes,
Evans, Oshilaja, Ralls.
Goalscorers:
Earnshaw 36, Mason 50
Booked:
McPhail 9 (foul)
Attendance: 12,454
Referee: Lee Probert (Gloucestershire)
Simon Cox fired
West Brom into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a hat-trick
against an under-strength
Cardiff
side who now have bigger fish to fry. Goals from Peter Odemwingie and Cox opened
up a two-goal lead just after the half-hour, only for a City side showing 10
changes to be level after 50 minutes courtesy of former Albion striker Robert
Earnshaw and substitute Joe Mason. It was
Republic of
Ireland
striker Cox, though, with only one goal this season and that back in August, who
had the final say with a 25-yard strike on the hour and a tap in at the death.
It was undoubtedly clear Bluebirds boss Malky Mackay had
Tuesday's Carling Cup semi-final first leg clash at Crystal Palace higher on his
agenda with seven players were rested. There appeared to be a hint of good
fortune about the Baggies' opener after seven minutes, although the fact referee
Lee Probert ignored strong penalty appeals shortly beforehand seemingly evened
up the score. James Morrison produced a surging run to the deadball line, with
his cut-back clearly hitting the hand of a sliding Dekel Keinan. The argument
from Probert appeared to be it was one of those Keinan - this week recalled from
a loan spell with Palace - was unable to avoid. Three minutes later, however,
and Albion had their
opener courtesy of Odemwingie's fifth goal of the season, and his third in his
last five appearances. Goalkeeper Tom Heaton's booted clearance landed at the
feet of Craig Dawson in the centre circle, the midfielder delivering a
first-time punt back up the field for Odemwingie. Although he appeared to be a
good few yards offside, there was no flag, allowing him to bury an 18-yard
effort beyond Heaton. The visitors then proceeded to dominate possession, albeit
without testing goalkeeper Ben Foster and putting the Baggies backline under any
undue pressure. Indeed, when the second goal came the game was flatlining at
that stage and in need of a spark, which duly arrived from Cox. Initially, it
was a powerful run from Cox that resulted in a foul from Keinan 12 yards outside
the area. From the free-kick, again there was a touch of good fortune for the
home side as Probert ordered a re-take and booked captain Nicky Shorey for not
playing to the whistle. Shorey's initial effort had gone out of play, but second
time of asking he delivered a precision ball into the heart of the area for Cox
to head home from eight yards his first goal since August 23. Three minutes
later, though, it was an error by Shorey that allowed City a lifeline, with
Filip Kiss on hand to take advantage and supply a simple ball into the six-yard
box for Earnshaw to tap beyond Foster.
A superb Heaton save a minute later prevented
Albion from restoring their
two-goal cushion, which instead was eroded five minutes after the break.
Earnshaw was the supplier. Turning on the pass, 42nd-minute substitute Mason
beat Foster in off his right-hand post with a low angled strike. After Shorey
hit the crossbar from 20 yards soon after, Cox doubled his tally in the 61st
minute with a sizzler from 25 yards that gave Heaton no chance as it crossed the
line after rattling off his right-hand upright. Morrison should then have sealed
matters in the 78th minute, but in a congested penalty area and after doing the
hard work in rounding Heaton, from two yards out he sliced his shot into the
sidenetting. It was Cox who sealed matters right on 90 minutes, tapping home his
hat-trick strike inside the six-yard box after being teed up by Odemwingie.
Sporting Life
CURRENT CONNECTIONS
None.
PAST
CONNECTIONS
Amongst the players to have turned out at various levels for
both clubs are:
Leon Barnett,
Kevin Bartlett, Gary Bell, Kevin Campbell, James Chambers, Stacy Coldicott, Stan Davies, Andy Dibble,
Rob Earnshaw,Elfed Evans, Wayne Fereday, Danny
Gabbidon, Mark Grew, Phil Griffiths, Derek Hogg, Wayne Hughes, Junichi
Inamoto, Godfrey Ingram, Jason Koumas, Ted Lane, Steve Lynex, Mick Martin,
Trevor Morris, Johnny Nicholls, Peter Odemwingie, Eli Postin, Darren Purse, Mel Rees, Walter Robbins,
Ricardo Scimeca, Ronnie Stockin, Kevin Summerfield, Bill Taylor, Andy Thompson,
Garry Thompson, Gavin Ward, Joe Willetts and George Wood.
Former Albion player Ronnie Rees later worked behind
the scenes at Ninian Park.
ALL-TIME LEAGUE & CUP RECORD VS CARDIFF CITY
VENUE |
P |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
Home |
27 |
15 |
4 |
8 |
56 |
36 |
Away |
26 |
7 |
10 |
9 |
38 |
39 |
Total |
53 |
22 |
14 |
17 |
94 |
75 |
LAST
TEN MATCHES AGAINST CARDIFF CITY
DATE |
COMPETITION |
H/A |
F-A |
GOALSCORERS |
GATE |
Sat 14 Dec 2013 |
Premier League |
A |
0-1 |
Whittingham |
26,632 |
Sat 07 Jan 2012 |
FA Cup |
H |
4-2 |
Odemwingie, Cox 3 - Earnshaw, Mason |
12,454 |
Tue 16 Feb 2010 |
Championship |
A |
1-1 |
Zuiverloon - Whittingham (pen) |
20,758 |
Tue 08 Dec 2009 |
Championship |
H |
0-2 |
Burke, Whittingham |
20,742 |
Tue 01 Apr 2008 |
Championship |
A |
0-0 |
|
13,195 |
Sat 19 Jan 2008 |
Championship |
H |
3-3 |
Bednar, Albrechtsen, Johnson (og) - Parry 2, Ledley |
22,325 |
Tue 25 Sep 2007 |
League Cup |
H |
2-4 |
Miller 2 (1 pen) - Fowler 2 (1 pen), Hasselbaink, Sinclair |
14,085 |
Tue 20 Feb 2007 |
Championship |
H |
1-0 |
Ellington |
18,802 |
Tue 08 Aug 2006 |
Championship |
A |
1-1 |
Gera - Scimeca |
18,506 |
Sun 31 Jul 2005 |
Friendly |
A |
2-0 |
Kanu, Gaardsoe |
8,038 |
|