Cardiff City’s poor season is set to continue when they host Middlesbrough in a Championship fixture at Cardiff City Stadium. Things have been horrible for the Welsh side who are likely to suffer another defeat at the hands of the in-form Boro.
Cardiff City are once again coming off a defeat as they were beaten 2-0 by Fulham in their midweek Championship outing. It was yet another fixture where they struggled to match up to the opposition and finished with just two attempts on target.
It is now seven straight Championship defeats for Cardiff and nine in their last 10 matches as pressure continues to mount on manager Mick McCarthy. They have been on a steady decline down the table and are now just two points above the relegation zone.
Cardiff City have looked lethargic in attack throughout their poor run, scoring just once in their last seven matches. Things are just as bad at the Cardiff City Stadium, where they have failed to score in their last three matches.
Middlesbrough continued their resurgence in midweek as they claimed a 2-0 victory over Barnsley. Andraz Sporar opened the scoring early in the contest and had to wait until late in the second half before Matt Crooks struck the second.
It was the second straight win and third in four matches for Middlesbrough, who appear to be turning a corner following a slow start to the season. Their recent good form has seen them climb into the top 10 and are just three points away from a playoff place.
Defending has been at the heart of Middlesbrough’s recent improvement as Neil Warnock’s men have kept clean sheets in three of their last four matches.
How the bookies view it
Despite all their struggles, Cardiff City still have a slight edge among the bookies at 6/4 with BoyleSports. A victory for Middlesbrough is valued at 21/10 by Unibet while a draw is set at odds of 28/13 by SBK.
Head to head
Cardiff City have a 17-8 advantage with six draws from 31 previous matches against Middlesbrough. The last meeting between both teams ended 1-1 back in February.
Players to watch
Middlesbrough's defence has been central to their good form with Sol Bamba, Paddy McNair and Lee Peltier looking solid at the back. They have led the team to three clean sheets in their last four matches and with Cardiff City struggling for goals, a similar outcome could be on the cards at 12/5 with bet365.
At the other end of the pitch, Middlesbrough have multiple attacking threats but striker Andraz Sporar could be worth keeping an eye on following his goal against Barnsley. Unibet has the Slovenian at 29/10 to score anytime.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been under 2.5 goals in five of the last six matches between Cardiff City and Middlesbrough and a repeat is priced at 5/7 with SBK. Given Boro's solid defence and with Cardiff struggling for goals BTTS NO could also be considered at 19/20 with BetVictor.
Middlesbrough have won to nil in three of their last four matches and could be tipped to earn a similar result at 4/1 with Paddy Power.
This England Championship match between Cardiff City and Middlesbrough will be played on Oct 23, 2021 and kick off at 12:30. Check below for our tipsters best Cardiff City vs Middlesbrough prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
