Omer Riza has sparked a furious backlash on social media after the Cardiff City manager branded some critical Bluebirds fans as “clueless”.
Riza took aim at those who have blasted him, at his weekly press conference on Wednesday, just two days before the club’s crunch fixture away at Sheffield United.
In a surprising assessment – but one that may indicate how the pressure is rising on Riza as he battles to save the club from relegation from the Championship – he said: “I know how important it is. It's a failure on my part if we go down.
“I have standards, goals, ideas about where I feel we can take this club.
“I have always been taught that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. It's only going to make me better, stronger.
“I read all the comments from fans and unfortunately a lot of them are clueless.
“That's what I've got to learn - to come away from that side of things. There are lot of good people out there and around the club and within the club. We've got to do this together.”
The use of the word “clueless” to describe even a small section of those who follow the club has not gone down well with many supporters online.
The comments provoked a mixed response on X.
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One fan said: “He needs to be sacked. Atmosphere will be toxic.”
Another wrote: “Not fit enough to run a bath. Do us all a favour and leave.”
And another suggested Riza was too thin-skinned in being rattled by online criticism when he posted: “We’re the only team in the Football League with an Instgram princess as manager.”
But Riza did find some fans rallying to support him, with one insisting: “He’s not wrong.”
Another wrote: “These comments were made in relation to a question about what's he learned and he said he learned to spend less time on social media. He also praised the fans a couple of minutes before and just after these comments. So just a reminder to watch the whole thing.”
Riza did speak in more positive terrms about Cardiff fans and added: “I don't want the fans to feel that we aren't bothered or that we are not fighting. That's certainly not the case.
“We are all trying to work together to get the best players on the pitch and performing.
“Sometimes performances have not been as energetic or constant as they need to be. Or team selection has been changed, for reasons no one can know other than us.
“You want to keep a consistent team, but there are a whole load of reasons.
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Riza believes the relegation battle has come down to a three-way fight between his Cardiff side, Derby County and Hull City to fall through the trapdoor along with bottom two, Plymouth and Luton.
The Bluebirds boss says he isn’t worried about fan speculation that he might not see out the season but admits that if Cardiff go down “it will be a failure on my part.”
With four games to go, starting with a Good Friday assignment at promotion chasing Sheffield United, Riza’s team are a point adrift of Derby in the third relegation slot.
“It's probably looking like us, Hull, Derby, that's probably it, if I'm being honest. But there are four games to go and 12 points to play for,” said Riza.
“I’m not looking at what I think it's going to take, we just have to focus on our own game.
“We are just going to have to stay present and stay in the moment.
“We need to be positive because negative thoughts lead to other pressures. We’ll simply take every game as it comes.”
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Riza took temporary charge in September when Erol Bulut was shown the door after a poor start, but for the past month Cardiff have been fighting not to drop into the third tier for the first time since 2003.
Some fans booed the team at the end of last weekend’s 1-0 home defeat to Stoke City and there have been calls for former boss Neil Warnock to come back to try to keep the club in the Championship.
“I haven’t been given assurances, but I’ve been given the job and until such time I’m told differently I’ll continue to do my job to the best of my ability and that’s it,” added Riza.
“No-one’s come out and said ‘you’re here until the end of the season’ – they’d be stupid to do that if they’ve got other things in their mind.
“I’m not concerned. If they feel someone could come in and save Cardiff from going down and do a better job than me, then I’m happy for that to happen.
“I don’t believe that’s the case, and I believe I’m the right person to do the job and that won’t change. If I felt I wasn’t the right person to do the job I would have said a long time ago I don’t feel I can do it and step away but that isn’t the case.”
“I believe we can take points from all four games we have left.”
Cardiff host Oxford United on Easter Monday and then West Brom the following Saturday. They finish their season at Norwich the following week.
