This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Comment’ series, this content strand is where the author of the article issues their personal opinion on the topic at hand....

Cardiff City secured their first victory since early October when they overcame Birmingham with a 4-2 win on Saturday afternoon.

Joe Ralls scored a hat-trick to help the Bluebirds to victory in the Welsh capital, while defender Curtis Nelson was also on the score sheet as Neil Warnock's side bounced back from their 1-0 defeat to Swansea the previous weekend.

The South Wales derby loss will have hurt Cardiff given their lacklustre performance in the match, but they showed much more spirit against the Blues to maintain their unbeaten record at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Ralls' midfield performance was one of the major positives for Warnock's side following the match, as the 26-year-old not only scored three of his side's four goals, but he delivered an assured showing in the centre of the park.

He was particularly important when Danny Ward's dismissal saw Cardiff reduced to ten men just after half-time, as his calming presence allowed his side to settle on the ball, while he also covered every blade of grass during his tireless showing.

The midfielder proved his ability to singlehandedly drag his side back into a match, and this could prove vital to Cardiff's efforts over the course of the season as it is not a particularly common trait within this Bluebirds side.

Rall's performance will have reminded Cardiff fans of the midfielder's quality after he struggled to assert himself on the Swansea match, and it is increasingly clear that he is one of the club's key men when he is playing at his best.

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Midfield is the one area of the pitch where Cardiff are blessed with quality. The likes of Ralls, Marlon Pack and Leandro Bacuna are all players who are capable of excelling at Championship level, but Ralls is perhaps the most important part of the Bluebirds' spine given his composed and hard-working attitude.

It would be fair to say that Cardiff's success this season hinges on whether they can consistently win the midfield battle in matches, as this is the area where they possess the most quality and can hurt opponents the most.

Therefore, Saturday's victory should be used as evidence that Cardiff should continue in making Ralls one of their key focal points going forward. This should particularly be the case given that Ralls' confidence will now be sky high following his hat-trick against the Blues.

He has now been a key presence in the Cardiff side over the last six seasons, but the hat-trick he scored on the weekend suggests that this campaign could even prove to be one of his most productive in a blue shirt.