Wales’ Euro 2020 hero Kieffer Moore had to be protected after a gruelling domestic season impacted by Covid-19, interim manager Robert Page has explained. Former lifeguard Moore was Wales’ saviour in their tournament opener against Switzerland as his second-half headed equaliser secured a 1-1 draw in Baku. The 6ft 5ins Cardiff City striker had only started two of the eight games Wales had played since manager Ryan Giggs went on leave in November, with Page preferring to play a false nine alongside two widemen.

Kieffer Moore insists he will take confidence from a goal against Switzerland he believes Zlatan Ibrahimovic would have been proud of. The Wales striker – nicknamed Zlatan by his Cardiff City teammates after a 20-goal season in the Championship – has pushed himself into the Euro 2020 spotlight with his equaliser for Wales against Switzerland in the 1-1 draw. Now, Moore has turned his attention to Wales’ next game against Turkey on Wednesday, which is likely to be the pivotal in their attempts to reach the tournament’s knockout stages.

James Collins has vowed to deliver hard work and goals after the Republic of Ireland striker linked up with his former international manager Mick McCarthy at Cardiff City for next season. The 30-year-old forward has made the switch from fellow Championship side Luton Town on a free transfer and has signed a two-year deal with the Bluebirds. It’s a move that some Cardiff fans will view at face value as the acquiring of a back-up to main striker Kieffer Moore – but others will consider with alarm as the prelude to the sale of the Wales striker later this summer.

Kieffer Moore intends to carry the inspiration of two Cardiff City legends with him when he plays for Wales at the Euros this summer. The Wales striker moved to 20 goals for the season with a brace against all-but-relegated Wycombe at the weekend, but his duties for club and country this season are far from over. Moore wants to keep his scoring form going in Cardiff’s two remaining Championship fixtures – away to Birmingham City and at home to Rotherham – to ensure a top 10 finish before heading off to try and plunder more goals for Wales at the delayed European Championship finals.

Kieffer Moore could leave Cardiff City if he makes an impact with Wales at the Euros this summer, manager Mick McCarthy has admitted. The Bluebirds striker made it 20 goals for the season with a strike in either half in the 2-1 win at home to Wycombe before Will Vaulks was dismissed late on. That tally made Moore the first Cardiff player to reach the 20-goal figure since the late Peter Whittingham managed it from midfield in the 2009-10 season.

Mick McCarthy insists Cardiff City are playing for more than just pride even though their play-off hopes are officially over. Failure to hold on to a 1-0 lead at Brentford on Tuesday night means the small mathematical chance the Bluebirds had of climbing back into the top six have gone. But McCarthy was still pleased with his side’s performance in the 1-1 draw at the club laying fourth in the Championship and reckons players are striving to build foundations for themselves and the club for next season.

Mick McCarthy was left ‘raging’ after seeing Cardiff City throw away victory at Reading. Kieffer Moore looked to have given the Bluebirds victory with his penalty three minutes from time.

Mick McCarthy says how Cardiff City overcome the disappointment of the home defeat by Nottingham Forest will decide if they win their play-offs fight. The Bluebirds job of making the top six is a lot harder after the 1-0 home defeat to a stubborn Forest side, with James Garner’s first half goal  enough for the visitors to claim all three points.

Mick McCarthy admitted he had to read the riot act to his Cardiff City players as his side’s play-off hopes suffered a blow. The Bluebirds draw goal-less draw at home to Stoke City saw them drop to ninth six points behind sixth-placed Barnsley who have a game in hand.

Mick McCarthy has expressed his fears over left Joe Bennett’s injury that overshadowed a stunning 4-0 victory over Derby County. The left-back looks set to miss the rest of City’s season after he let out an agonising shriek as fell to the ground in a heap just past the half-hour mark.

Mick McCarthy is relishing the pressure now being on Cardiff City as a sixth win on the trot in a 2-1 victory at Bournemouth saw they leapfrog their rivals into a play-offs spot. Skipper Sean Morrison and Kieffer Moore, with a penalty, gave City a two goal lead at half-time.

Cardiff City manager Mick McCarthy says that from day one his players have worked hard – and that’s why they are now just three points off the Championship play-offs. The Bluebirds turnaround under McCarthy has been phenomenal, going from being nine points off relegation and 13 points off the turn-six to having realistic promotion ambitions once again.