Cardiff City caretaker manager Steve Morison believes he has already instilled belief, confidence and bravery in his side going into tonight's clash with Queens Park Rangers, speaking to the club's media team ahead of the game.

The Bluebirds were desperately lacking belief after Mick McCarthy's last game against Middlesbrough last month, with their defeat against Neil Warnock's men extending their losing run to eight games in the Championship and leaving them hovering dangerously above the relegation.

During this run, they scored just one goal in over 720 minutes of second-tier football and conceded 19 goals, a recipe for disaster that led McCarthy and assistant manager Terry Connor to leave the club after seeing the board remain patient for some time.

 

 

They looked to be on course for their ninth consecutive loss last weekend with Steven Fletcher putting Stoke City 3-0 up at the bet365 Stadium early on in the second half, but goals from Rubin Colwill, Mark Harris and Kieffer Moore in the space of five minutes rescued a much-needed draw for the Welsh side who will be eager to build on that tonight.

Morison's men come up against a side that have gone winless in their last three competitive games, losing to Peterborough United, bowing out to third-tier outfit Sunderland in the Carabao Cup and most recently, failing to hold onto a lead against Nottingham Forest as they conceded a late equaliser at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.

Cardiff caretaker boss believes they already have three key attributes that will make them a force against Mark Warburton's side tonight, saying: "The biggest change (that has been made) is belief, confidence, being brave.

"We needed to try and change something and shift the mindset. Hopefully the last 40 minutes on Saturday has done that and it would be great to get a positive result on Wednesday.

"It will be an honour and absolute privilege to stand there on the touchline.

"The noise that the 1,000 made was fantastic at Stoke, so to have everyone there together with a positive atmosphere will be fantastic.

"Hopefully the players will play in a positive way like they finished the game on Saturday.

"That's what it's all about. It will be thoroughly enjoyable and, hopefully, less stressful than Saturday!"

The Verdict:

What Cardiff need just as much as points right now is a bit of belief to get them out of their current rut. Their point and comeback against Stoke at the weekend was commendable and a good start.

But let's be clear, this can only be the start. Their draw in Staffordshire will count for very little if they are unable to capitalise on this and win at least a point tonight, even with QPR's capabilities in front of goal.

Considering Rangers are winless in their last three, there's no better time to face the west London outfit and in front of a crowd that are likely to be buoyant under a fresh face, Bluebirds fans could prove to be the 12th man tonight in their quest to pick up a win after such a poor run.

The Welsh club haven't won a game since the middle of September though - and that came against a struggling Nottingham Forest side at the time. Getting over this mental block by finally getting a victory after all that time is important and getting it tonight would set them on the right path.

Considering Barnsley could be set to get a new manager and with that, a new manager bounce like the Bluebirds could experience at some point, points on the board matter more than anything else at this stage.

And Derby County are also working their way up the table as another team they need to keep an eye on.