By Gareth James
Omer Riza is forwarding all queries over the Cardiff City manager’s position to the club’s hierarchy.
The Bluebirds interim manager is now unbeaten in five matches after a gritty performance eked out a 0-0 draw at West Bromwich Albion.
Jak Alnwick on Omer Riza:
“Man management, the way he talks to players on and off the pitch, whether it’s a text at night time or a conversation in his room. For me, he’s been brilliant. I don’t think Omer’s getting enough credit.”#CardiffCity pic.twitter.com/Te7wkYPFmW
— ccfcinsider (@ccfcinsiderr) October 26, 2024
But Riza – who declared he wanted the job weeks ago – has decided to refer all questions up the ladder, rather than risk saying something that might harm his chances.
“You’d have to ask the board, I don’t have anything much to say,” said Riza when quizzed on his thoughts on becoming Erol Bulut’s permanent successor.
“The board will talk to the media and then, potentially, everyone will find out what’s happening.”
If Riza’s strategy is to let his results do the talking, then his the case is convincing.
He began with a defeat at Hull City, but has since earned three victories and two draws – collecting 11 points that have lifted Cardiff from bottom to 20th in the Championship table.
The latest result leaves them a point above the Championship relegation zone.
https://twitter.com/RichLew82/status/1850210757163487312
Albion’s miserly record in front of goal continued, but that was largely down to Cardiff goalkeeper Jak Alnwick, who produced a series of important saves, most notably from Grady Diangana.
“We knew this would be tough – but we had to defend, it was relentless and nice to get a point,” said Riza.
“But Jak’s been first class, he’s a leader on and off the pitch. He’s been given the captain’s armband while Joe Ralls is injured – and he’s led us really well.
“Jak pulled off some magnificent saves and dealt with the ball in the box, credit to him, he deserves a lot of credit, he was superb.
“If I’m being honest, we came here to win the game, that was our first thought. But West Brom were very good, they don’t give much away.
“We created a couple of opportunities where we maybe could have scored. We felt in the first 30 minutes, with the way we play, we might have opened Albion up, but we weren’t tidy enough. That allowed Albion to come at us.
“In the second half, we made little tweaks and it was a really good defensive display.”
FULL-TIME: WBA 0-0 CARDIFF CITY
From bad to worse. 6 games without a win. 2 hamstring injuries and more points dropped.
Serious questions needed. Nothing is working, severe lack of creativity and abysmal finishing. Change is needed.
Thoughts, Baggies? ⤵️ #wba pic.twitter.com/VjtggN1MBQ
— westbrom.fc (@talkwba) October 26, 2024
West Brom manager Carlos Corberan admitted he was frustrated by his team’s lack of goals after a game which saw them have 19 shots.
On what was the second anniversary of him taking over as manager, he saw his side’s winless run extend to six games – continuing the worst sequence of his time at Albion.
“I won’t criticise a single player, but they cannot focus on the noise of this situation,” said Corberan.
“They should focus on the things we’re doing well. We had opportunities to score and didn’t, we were in control of the game.
“But we’ve only lost two matches, and kept seven clean sheets, we’re doing something right, but we need to create more. It was disappointing for everyone, the players and myself.
“We still have to do better. We weren’t far away from scoring but we couldn’t do it and we didn’t achieve the result we wanted to achieve.
“I wouldn’t say we were unlucky. What we have done in recent games has not been enough to win, we need to reach those levels. I can understand the frustrations when you have the ball and don’t create enough.”
https://twitter.com/CdiffBlue/status/1850637978839961905
