This weekend sees Cardiff City play Bournemouth in their first home game since Emiliano Sala’s tragic disappearance. The Bluebirds face a daunting prospect; the Cherries’ last game was a decisive four-nil win over top-four favourites Chelsea.
In a strange twist, Jonathan Moss was last in charge for Chelsea’s home win over Cardiff on the 15th September. An Eden Hazard hat-trick saw off a spirited Cardiff, but the score line didn’t perhaps offer a fair reflection of what was for 83 minutes, a well-contested affair.
That defeat saw Cardiff score their first away goal of the season courtesy of the evergreen Sol Bamba, but once again Neil Warnock was left disappointed at his side’s inability to convert the rare chances created.
Bournemouth were Cardiff’s first opponents of the season and ran out comfortable two-nil winners, thanks to Ryan Fraser and Callum Wilson goals. It turned out to be something of a rude awakening for the expectant Bluebirds, who struggled to cope with the Cherries’ movement up front.
See below for an overview of his Premier League stats:
• 189 games refereed
• 649 yellow card issued (an average of 3.43 yellows per game)
• 12 straight red cards
• 58 penalties awarded
The last game Moss refereed was Manchester United vs Burnley at Old Trafford. The clarets almost walked away with the most unlikely of wins, had it not been for United channelling the spirit of Alex Ferguson with a late, late equaliser.
It will be another emotional occasion tomorrow as Cardiff face life without their record signing. Here’s hoping they can continue to improve as they did on Tuesday night against Arsenal.