Cardiff City will be hoping to get back up to speed quickly following a disruptive December.

Steve Morison’s side haven’t played since December 11, a 2-2 draw against Birmingham. 

Cardiff find themselves in the midst of a relegation battle, hovering only three points clear of the drop zone. 

Morison took over the side on a temporary basis at the end of October, but was quickly appointed as permanent boss in early November. His first game in charge was a 3-3 draw with Stoke City.

Since his appointment, Cardiff have earned 11 points from eight games, as many points as they earned in the opening 13 games of the season. 

Their opponents this evening are AFC Bournemouth, who sit atop the Championship table.

Their previous league meeting this season was a 1-0 victory for the Cherries, but Cardiff did come out on top in last year’s fixture at the Vitality Stadium. 

Captain Sean Morrison will be unavailable for selection as he continues his three-match ban. That means it will likely be an unchanged back three for tonight’s game, of Mark McGuinness, Aden Flint and Curtis Nelson.

Cardiff will likely be without Sam Bowen, Tom Sang and Isaac Vassell through injuries. Otherwise, there is a clean bill of health within the team. 

Morison has favoured a midfield four of Ryan Giles, Joe Ralls, Marlon Pack and Perry Ng during his time in charge of the team. 

Up front is where Cardiff have tended to rotate players since Morison’s arrival. However, James Collins, Rubin Colwill and Kieffer Moore have been chosen in recent fixtures. 

This will make it an unchanged side to the one that faced Birmingham City on December 11. That kind of consistency in the team will be needed if results are to pick up. 

Cardiff avoided the busy Christmas schedule that normally happens every year due to Covid-19 fixture chaos, so the players who were unaffected by the coronavirus should have had the time to rest up and do some solid training time on the pitch.

The players will likely be raring to go for a big game against the Championship leaders tonight.