What To Expect From Cardiff City This Season

The new boys of the Premier League - playing in the top flight for the first time since 1962 - Cardiff City look like a team who may be able to hold their own in England's best league. Malky Mackay's men managed to win the championship last season, totalling 87 points and winning 25 matches along the way. They finished eight points ahead of second place Hull City and lost only nine games, joint with Brighton as the team who lost the least games. 

Cardiff's most recognisable players are Craig Bellamy and Fraizer Campbell, two strikers who have experience in the Premier League. Added to that, Cardiff have spent a total of £20,500,000 in the summer, bringing in players that include Gary Medel, Steven Caulker and Andreas Cornelius. So there is quality all over the Cardiff City squad for Mackay to select for each match.

Cardiff's start to the season has been a mixed bag of joy and despair, with their first match - away at West Ham - ending in a 2-0 loss. However, their first home game - against 2011-2012 champions Manchester City - ended spectacularly with a late double from Campbell that handed them a 3-2 victory against the highest spending team of recent years. 

Cardiff City's next six games - Everton (H), Hull (A), Tottenham (H), Fulham (A), Newcastle (H), Chelsea (A) - should provide quite a challenge (on the whole) for the newly promoted side. Games like Everton, Tottenham and Chelsea will be especially difficult considering the quality of the three teams. However, games like Hull and Newcastle should provide entertaining scenes as both teams will be similarly matched as far as skill goes.  

In a longer-term time frame, if The Bluebirds continue to use the underdog mentality to their advantage in the big games and use their experienced squad against the more evenly matched teams, Cardiff should be able to finish in a decent position come May. Almost like Norwich did a few years ago, if their fresh style of play can continue to be a shock to the systems of the more established Premier league sides, they may finish around 14th or 15th this year.