Bournemouth clinch deserved win as newly promoted Cardiff receive rude awakening to life in the Premier League
Bournemouth 2-0 Cardiff City: Ryan Fraser and Callum Wilson's goals gave Bournemouth an ideal start to the Premier League, but Cardiff must quickly improve
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Your support makes all the difference.Tipped by many as favourites to go down, Neil Warnock’s Cardiff side experienced a harsh introduction to life in the top-flight, receiving an early reminder of the scale of the task that lies ahead if they are to avoid an immediate return to the Championship.
Ryan Fraser’s first half goal and a late second from Callum Wilson secured a victory that would have been even more convincing had Wilson not seen a first half penalty saved by Neil Ethereidge. For Bournemouth, it was the ideal start to their fourth successive Premier League campaign while Warnock will hope his side’s improved second half performance can be built on quickly as the season begins to take shape.
Cardiff have approached the Premier League in a more understated way than Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers, the other promoted clubs, whose summer spending has dwarfed the Welsh club’s relatively modest outlay of £28 million.
The difficulty facing Warnock and the Cardiff hierarchy was summed up by the manager before this game when he reflected on his failure to sign Jefferson Lerma, the Colombia midfielder who became Bournemouth’s record signing when he moved from Levante this week. "Our number one target in midfield was the lad Bournemouth signed, Lerma,” said Warnock. "We thought it'd be about five or six million, and I think they paid about £25m. We had a rude awakening early doors. We were quite a long way away from the top targets so we had to be realistic really.”
Forced to cut his cloth more carefully, Warnock managed to bolster his squad with five new signings, including Harry After, the Bournemouth midfielder, and Real Betis’ Victor Camarasa, both signed on loan at the end of the window. Neither, though, figured in the Cardiff starting line-up at the Vitality Stadium with Arter ineligible to face his parent club and Camarasa held back on the bench along with Alex Smithies, Greg Cunningham and Josh Murphy, the other summer signings.
In fact the only newcomer to start was Bobby Reid, the forward signed from Bristol City for £10 million, as Warnock entrusted the task of establishing a foothold in the top flight largely to the players who had steered the club to promotion last season.
Initially, though, it looked as though that might prove beyond them with Bournemouth looking far more assured. Like Warnock, Eddie Howe handed a debut to just one of his new arrivals with David Brooks, the midfielder signed for £10 million, slotting in on the right hand side of midfield.
The 21-year-old fitted in well as the home side repeatedly stretched the visitors, particularly on the break and the sense that Cardiff were feeling the pressure was accentuated when City keeper Neil Etheridge appeared to indulge in a spot of time-wasting as he delayed taking a 20th minute free-kick. If the intention was to disrupt the home side, the tactic failed to work with Bournemouth finally gaining reward for their impressive early work when Fraser claimed the opening goal in the 24th minute.
Wilson collected a threaded pass from Joshua King in the right hand channel inside the Cardiff area and did well to evade a Bruno Ecuele Manga and pull back a low cross towards the unmarked Fraser who finished well from the edge of the six-yard box.
Howe’s side deserved the lead and should have doubled their advantage nine minutes later when Wilson went down under a challenge from Ecuele Manga as he surged forward. However, Wilson failed to take advantage, striking his penalty tamely to Etheridge’s left although the keeper did well to reach the ball with a full length dive.
Cardiff had rarely looked capable of punishing Bournemouth for that miss during the first half. The second half brought an improvement with the visitors showing more purpose and Murphy, introduced from the bench, in particular causing problems while centre-back Sean Morrison was denied by an excellent Asmir Begovic. Less impressive was their defensive work and Wilson wrapped up the win in the first minute of added time when he turned home from ten yards after good work from Simon Francis.
Bournemouth (4-4-2): Begovic 6; Smith 6 (Defoe 90), S Cook 7, Ake 7, Daniels 6; Brooks 6 (Francis 65, 6), Surman 7, Gosling 7, Fraser 8; King 5, Wilson 7 (Mousset 90).
Subs: Boruc, Ibe, L Cook, Mings.
Cardiff City (4-1-4–1): Etheridge 7; Morrison 6, Manga 5, Bennett 5; Bamba 6; Mendez-Laing 6 (Murphy 62,7), Paterson 5 (Ward 62,6), Ralls 7, Hoilett 6; Reid 7 (Reid 88)
Subs: Smithies, Richards, Cunningham, Camarasa.
Referee: K Friend 6
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