U21 Match Centre | Cardiff City 0-2 Ipswich Town
City's U21 side was defeated by the Tractor Boys on Saturday afternoon.
The fixture will take place on November 23rd, with a kick-off time of 12pm.
The young Bluebirds currently sit second in the table, with a busy upcoming period, with five fixtures between now and December 6th.
MATCH SUMMARY
Cardiff City’s U21s fell to their first defeat in this season’s PL Cup, as they lost 2-0 at home to Ipswich Town.
The game was only three minutes old when Ipswich were handed an opportunity to score from the penalty spot after a foul in the area. Up stepped Tommy Taylor, who struck the ball down the middle and put the Tractor Boys ahead. They almost doubled their lead moments later, but Tudor Mendel’s shot from range hit the side netting.
After the opening ten minutes, City began to turn the screw. Tanatswa Nyakuhwa saw his one-on-one attempt saved by Henry Gray. Cian Ashford was the next to try his arm, but his effort from range rose just over the crossbar.
The Bluebirds were playing a high pressing style and were more than happy to commit bodies forward, and that was causing problems for the Ipswich defence, but they couldn’t find that bit of luck in front of goal. Instead, at the other end, Jake Dennis had to be alert to deny Ryan Carr. Despite being the stronger side, City went in behind at the break.
By comparison the second half was quieter with chances few and far between. Matt Bloxham’s side still looked like the likelier team to score but couldn’t find an opening in the Ipswich defence. Their task became easier with 15 minutes to go, as Abu Onuchukwi was shown a straight red card for a tackle on Troy Perrett.
However, entering the final ten minutes, Ipswich doubled their lead through a powerful header from captain Jokubas Mazionis. With the final whistle blown, City suffered their first defeat in the PDL Cup. Next up for the Bluebirds is a trip to Millwall on Wednesday afternoon.
FINAL SCORE: CARDIFF CITY U21 0-2 IPSWICH TOWN U21
Cardiff City: Dennis, Giles (Kpakio 46’), Davies, Twose (Perrett 61’), Tsunoda (Lawlor 46’), Cook, Jefferies, Mafico, Nyakuhwa, George (Gbadehan 78’), Ashford. Subs not used: Armstrong.
POST-MATCH | BLOXHAM
“We’re frustrated that the number of attacking opportunities and situations we created didn’t end in any goals. We created enough chances to win two games today, especially first half. In the second half we had some good transitional moments, which we let ourselves down on, and then to concede a penalty and a wide free kick is disappointing, because they didn’t create too much outside of the goals.
“We know we have to be more ruthless in both boxes. That’s an area we’ve been trying to improve on all season, and it’s an area where, if we want to progress in cup competitions and continue our league form, we have to improve in that area. It can cost us, and part of the boys’ development in turning into first team players is learning how to be ruthless in these moments.
“It’s great to see Ryotaro back on the pitch. He’s been great with the boys in training, and after recovering from such a long time away from the pitch, he came on and enjoyed it, and hopefully we can build him up over the next few weeks. Troy has been away but has done well lately in the international break with the first team, so it was great to get him involved today, and it’s now created more competition in the squad.”
PRE-MATCH | MATTHEW BLOXHAM
Ahead of the match, Matthew Bloxham said: "After the Everton game, we were disappointed to have a break because we had a lot of momentum. Getting back playing on Saturday is something we're all looking forward to. We can't let the break affect us and we have to come back against a strong Ipswich side and maintain the levels that we've previously hit.
"We try to keep a level of similarity and consistency in what we do and how we play, so in terms of the boys coming back from international duty, the aim is that it's muscle memory. We're confident that our preparation for the game on Saturday will be positive. We've played Ipswich twice and know a lot about them and know they're a good side.
"The boys that have gone away on international duty, they've gained great experience, but the boys that have stayed have worked hard, so as a squad, we're in a really good place going into the game.
"Ipswich have been a difficult side to play against in the way they set up. Whilst we want to counter-act their strengths, we want to play to ours and stick to what we believe in and what has got us to the position we're in. As much as we're expecting a test against Ipswich, we want to be brave with the football that we play."
PRE-MATCH | RONAN KPAKIO
Ahead of the fixture, we caught up with Ronan Kpakio, who was recently on international camp with Wales' U19s, playing three 90 minutes against Scotland, France and Liechtenstein on the way to securing progress to the Elite Round of qualification for the U19 European Championship.
“It’s great for us as a group to get through to the Elite Round. We showed what we can do. Every game brought a different challenge, but we were able to rise to them, play how we wanted to play and get the results that we needed. We’re hoping that we can take that into the next round now.
“It was a great experience. The first game against Scotland was a battle, so we had to be good out of possession, which I think we were. The France game was a bit more open, so we could play a bit more and implement our style better. In the last game against Liechtenstein, we had a lot of the ball, which suited me because I felt like I could show what I can do.
“It’s always good to go away on international camp to get a different experience. You can take what you’ve learned into what you’re doing at club level. That can be on and off the pitch, whether it’s tactical or technical, being in a different environment, you learn and see new things."
The City defender continued by reflecting on the U21s' season so far and the aims for the coming weeks.
“We’re doing really well so far. It’s been a really positive start to the season, but we just hope that we can continue playing how we have been playing. Being on international break doesn’t stop anything, we want to hit the ground running and be ready for our next game on Saturday. We’re trying to stay as focused as possible to keep winning games and put in good performances.
“It’s really important to take forward our momentum from before the international break. We were playing very well, so we need to take that forward and focus on each game one at a time.”
Ticket information
Entry for this Saturday's match at Cardiff International Sports Campus will be free for all supporters.
Reaching THE GROUND
Supporters planning on attending on Saturday should use the following address:
Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith Rd, Cardiff, CF11 8AZ.
The ground is located an 11-minute walk away from Ninian Park Station and a 32-minute walk from Cardiff Central Station.