Cardiff City

Image source, Getty Images

Head coach Brian Barry-Murphy says Cardiff City will show no fear at promotion-chasing Middlesbrough on Saturday. 17 October (12:30 BST)

The Bluebirds are still searching for their first away win this season as they travel to the Riverside Stadium to take on a 'Boro team unbeaten in their last eight league games and just two points behind Championship leaders Swansea.

"We don't fear them and we're not afraid of anything," said Barry-Murphy.

"We go there, try and play in the same manner as Tuesday and try and win."

Cardiff - who beat Watford 5-1 at home in midweek - will have to try and keep the Championship's top scorer Will Lankshear quiet.

The former Tottenham striker has scored 10 goals in all competitions since a summer move to Teesside, part of a recruitment drive which saw Middlesbrough spend over £40m on new players.

"What the other clubs do is none of my business, and it doesn't take any of our focus," the Cardiff head coach added.

"Our focus is on ourselves completely, and we respect them enormously.

"The team, the manager, had a brilliant season last year but we don't fear them.

"We're not afraid of anything and we've got a group of players who will show that on Saturday by how aggressive we are in the game, how we try and play our game and try and win.

"We have two choices: we go there and we try and step back, or we try and step forward.

"And by stepping forward, we don't know how good or how well we can play, but we're going to give everything to try and do that and try and win."

Image source, Getty Images

Cardiff City full-back Joel Bagan says finally making his international debut for the Republic of Ireland last month was "an amazing experience" for him and his family.

Bagan, born in Basingstoke, qualifies to play for Ireland through his maternal grandparents who are from Cork.

He made his senior international debut coming off the bench against Israel in September, playing the final two minutes.

"To have that moment and to get two appearances was amazing," the 25-year-old said.

"My parents, my girlfriend and my brother came over [for the game].

"It was nice to have them there.

I've got so much to thank my parents for, I wouldn't be in this position today if it wasn't for all the sacrifices they made."

Bagan won eight caps for the Republic of Ireland Under-21s between 2021 and 2022 and admits he did fear his chance of full senior honours had passed him by.

"I had to wait a few years," he added.

"The longer it goes on, you don't forget about it, but you start to think maybe.

"I just had think about playing at Cardiff regularly and trying to perform well.

"But it's something that I've always wanted to to do before I finished my career.

"So to finally get there, it was a big thing."

Ireland go to Austria on 14 November before hosting Kosovo in Dublin three days later in their final two Nations League fixtures still with a chance of securing promotion to League A.

Bagan is targeting more caps with another major tournament on the horizon.

"I've had a taste for it now, I've been once, but I want it to be a more regular thing.

"Hopefully I can get back into the squad for next month

"This is probably the best time to try and stay in the squad with Euro 2028 coming up.

"Hopefully it'll be exciting times ahead."

Image source, Getty Images

Cardiff City boss Brian Barry-Murphy has rekindled his association with Craig Samson by recruiting him as the Bluebirds' new goalkeeping coach.

Samson, 42, worked briefly under Barry-Murphy at Rochdale in 2020.

He has since worked at Hibernian and Aberdeen, leaving the former after a second stint ended in September.

Cardiff have not had anyone in the role since Gavin Ward left after his two-year spell in May.

Image source, Opta

Middlesbrough will seek to go top of the Championship, for a few hours at least, as they welcome Cardiff to the Riverside on Saturday (12:30 BST).

Boro overcame Wolves at home last Saturday before a last-gasp 3-2 win at Stoke to sit second, two points behind Swansea, who face third-placed West Ham at 15:00 BST.

The Bluebirds are 19th, two points above the drop zone, after winning two of their past three games, thumping Watford 5-1 at home on Tuesday night, but have lost their past four games on the road.

• Middlesbrough have only lost one of their past 10 league games against Cardiff City (W6 D3), a 2-3 home defeat in September 2022.

• Cardiff have lost four of their past five league meetings with Middlesbrough, although did draw 1-1 at the Riverside most recently in January 2025.

• For the second season in succession, Middlesbrough find themselves on exactly 21 points after their opening 10 games of a campaign, matching their best start since 1995-96.

• Cardiff have won two of their past three Championship matches (L1), as many victories as across their prior 24 combined in the second tier (D11 L11).

• This season across all competitions, Middlesbrough's Will Lankshear has struck 10 goals, one of only two players to hit double figures for a side in England's top four tiers, alongside Manchester City's Erling Haaland (also 10).

Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy previews Cardiff's test at promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough.

Image source, Huw Evans Picture Agency

Cardiff City will be without both Dylan Lawlor and Rubin Colwill for Saturday's trip to Middlesbrough.

Defender Lawlor was forced off early in Tuesday's win against Watford with a hamstring injury.

It came just three days after the 20-year-old centre-back had made his first start of the season, having recovered from a knee problem picked up on Wales duty in June.

Lawlor - who missed all four of Wales' October Nations League games - is due to have a scan on Friday to discover the full extent of the injury, and with just four weeks to go until the final two international fixtures of the year, there are fears Lawlor could still be on the sidelines when Wales face Norway on 14 November and for Portugal's visit to Cardiff three days later.

Midfielder Colwill has missed the past five matches with an ankle problem and will remain unavailable this weekend.

Striker Yousef Salech is in contention to return while defender Krystian Bielik is back after serving a two game ban following his controversial altercation with a Portsmouth fan during their Championship match at Fratton Park in September.

Cardiff City head coach Brian Barry-Murphy delivers his assessment of the Bluebirds' 5-1 win over Watford.

Image source, Huw Evans Picture Agency

Cardiff City will assess the extent of Dylan Lawlor's hamstring injury after the Wales defender left the pitch in anguish against Watford.

Lawlor covered his face with his shirt when he was forced off in the 29th minute of the Bluebirds' 5-1 win over Watford on Tuesday.

It came just three days after the centre-back made his first start of the season having recovered from a knee problem picked up on Wales duty in June.

Head coach Brian Barry-Murphy confirmed the 20-year-old had suffered a hamstring problem but said he would have to wait for the results of a scan on Wednesday before discovering how long he could be without the six-cap international.

Lawlor missed all four of Wales' recent Nations League games with the knee issue that also ruled him out of the June friendly in Romania.

He recovered to make a substitute appearance for Cardiff in the win over Charlton before the international break, but was allowed to continue his return to fitness at his club rather than go away with Craig Bellamy's squad.

He was withdrawn in the latter stages of Saturday's 2-1 defeat by Blackburn Rovers as a precaution.

But now both he and Cardiff fans face a nervous wait, with Barry-Murphy likely to deliver an update ahead of Saturday's trip to Middlesbrough.

Wales boss Bellamy will be eager to find out if it impacts plans for next month's games with Norway and Portugal.

Lawlor's fellow Wales international Rubin Colwill could return this weekend having trained on Tuesday morning.

Yousef Salech will also be hoping to be cleared to play having also trained following a shoulder injury.

Image source, Huw Evans Picture Agency

Cardiff City head coach hopes his side's thumping win over Watford can be a springboard in their Championship season.

The Bluebirds were hovering above the relegation places before Tuesday's visit of the Hornets.

It had seen some describe the fixture as must-win given the upcoming games against a string of promotion hopefuls, starting at second-placed Middlesbrough on Saturday.

But having been criticised for not taking chances in front of goal following their promotion from League One, Cardiff showed their attacking threat with a confident 5-1 win over the struggling Hornets.

It was the perfect way to bounce back from a disappointing performance in defeat at Blackburn Rovers on Saturday, with Cardiff securing a second successive home win.

And asked if it could be a turning point, boss Brian Barry-Murphy said: "I hope so. I think every game in the Championship is such a difficult challenge.

"We had really good intentions on Saturday of doing the exact same thing and it wasn't to be.

"We just weren't at our best and we were very intent on going for the win against Watford and we'll do the exact same on Saturday and see if we're good enough."

The trip to Boro kicks-off a run of games that includes a resurgent Birmingham City, Wolves and West Ham.

"We can't wait, we wanted this challenge, that's why we worked so hard last season," said Barry-Murphy.

"We just have to focus on one game at a time because if you start looking ahead too far it just gets too confusing for everyone.

"We'll focus on the next game, like we did against Watford, give it everything we have, see what players are available, and then do our best."

Image source, BBC Sport

Cardiff City returned from the extended international window with a 2-1 defeat by Blackburn Rovers on Saturday.

The Bluebirds were once again missing key players such as Rubin Colwill, Yousef Salech and Calum Chambers.

We asked what you think Cardiff need to fix, and this is what you had to say.

David: They needed to strengthen the side as soon as promotion to the Championship was confirmed. As usual, talked a lot on how they were going to get new players but didn't. Look where they now.

Rick: The squad is lacking in quality in key areas - at absolute minimum a proper number six and cover for Yousef Salech. The fans are already resigned to just survival in the division as being the primary target. Brian Barry-Murphy is trusted and we love his style of play, but he definitely needs players in January. But who knows what Vincent Tan wants?

Gav: The recruitment team should be working flat out to find the players Barry-Murphy needs so we can improve and build in January. It might be the case that we get up to speed and improve the longer the season goes on, but we can't risk pressure being put on the manager who is the best fit for us in decades.

Lyndon: Unfortunately there are too many youngsters with not enough experience at this level. More experience was required before this campaign and all the fans knew it. Total lack of investment from the board, as usual. Time for a new board and some fresh ideas.

Mike: Team needs physicality, someone to boss midfield, someone who is experienced and been around, sort of a bit nasty and difficult. We also need a goal poacher, a finisher, to all the opportunities being created.

Ben: Abundantly clear we can't keep a clean sheet for love nor money. How about beefing up the midfield, especially the middle of the park when we're away from home?

Image source, BBC Sport

It was back to business, but not as Cardiff boss Brian Barry-Murphy had hoped for as his side lost 2-1 at Blackburn on Saturday.

Barry-Murphy later expressed his frustration at what he viewed as a "lack off aggressiveness", particularly in the first half.

But he also highlighted a much-improved second-half performance.

So what are your thoughts as Cardiff are only above the Championship relegation zone on goal difference?

Let us know your views by clicking here.

Image source, Getty Images

Brian Barry-Murphy revealed he subbed Dylan Lawlor at Blackburn Rovers as he did not want to risk the young defender after he felt soreness in his knee.

Lawlor got his first start in Cardiff's 2-1 defeat to Blackburn, having missed the first 10 games of the season due to a knee injury suffered while playing for Wales.

The 20-year-old managed 78 minutes at Ewood Park before being replaced by Calum Scanlon as a precaution.

"He was a bit sore on his knee, and we only had one more stoppage left to make changes," said boss Barry-Murphy.

"I didn't want to leave him on in case he had to come off. We made the changes in that situation so that we would not be left with 10 men.

"Dylan is a great lad, a great player, and he will improve a lot from today."

Cardiff will hope that Lawlor can shake off any fitness issues ahead of Tuesday evening's meeting with Watford at Cardiff City Stadium.

Summer signing Krystian Bielik will serve the last of his two-game ban during the week, while Will Fish could feature after being named in the team at Blackburn.

Fish has not featured for Cardiff at all this season, having been in recovery after a hernia injury.