Riza post-WBA | A great point
Omer Riza spoke to the press following our goalless draw at West Bromwich Albion on Saturday afternoon.
The Bluebirds claimed another important clean sheet to secure a valuable point away from home.
“It’s a great point," Omer began. "We knew today was going to be difficult, it’s a tough place to come. Carlos [Corberán] and his staff have assembled a really good, resilient side. We knew we’d get our moments and I think we created enough opportunities today to score a goal, but we weren’t clinical enough. We defended really well. To get a clean sheet against some of their play was a credit to the boys.
“We just have to be slightly better at times when it comes to controlling the game, so that they can’t do what they did to us in the second half. It’s not always easy - it’s easier said than done. It was a different mentality today to come here. The clean sheet was really important, it gives momentum to the team.
"We could have potentially nicked a goal, which would have been great, but to come here with that mentality, that mindset and defend the way we did, credit to the boys, they were brilliant."
With chances at both ends in the contest, the clearest came in the final minutes, when Jak Alnwick made a fine stop to deny Josh Maja's header.
Omer continued: “They had a couple of chances and it wasn’t just about making the save, it’s the opportunity that you present the opposition. We were probably a bit open at times and they started to hurt us in wide areas a little bit more, but we made subs to try and allow those problems to sure up. We did that today and defended really well.
“We’ve shown good signs of what it could look like moving forward and I think the boys have continued that. The resilience and the belief is there from the players, they’ve worked really hard today. They listen, take things on board, we’ve got a good relationship between staff and players; to come here today and get a point is credit to the boys."
The Bluebirds are now unbeaten in five matches, building on two home victories over Plymouth Argyle and Portsmouth, with a fixture against Norwich City at Cardiff City Stadium next up.
“There are different situations in different games," Omer added. "The last two games gave us the opportunity to attack a lot more. We knew today would be a lot more difficult.
“They are a really disciplined side, they don’t allow balls in between lines, they don’t give up opportunities, but we created again today, and if we had scored in those moments it sways the game and doesn’t allow them to apply pressure to us too much.
"There are things we still need to work on, which we spoke about. Hopefully, we can continue and keep moving forward."