Cardiff City 1-1 Middlesbrough: Boro boss Neil Warnock denied return of victory

Cardiff City fought back to tie Middlesbrough and deny former coach Neil Warnock a winning return to the Welsh capital.

The hosts tied from a corner after the break, with Sheyi Ojo sliding to convert Kieffer Moore’s header.

Ojo fired wide as the Bluebirds searched for a late winner, but to no avail, leaving Neil Harris’s team winless at home after four attempts this season.

Middlesbrough fell to 13th in the championship table, while Cardiff fell to 15th after seven games each.

The absence of a crowd at Cardiff City Stadium was deeply felt in Warnock’s return, denying the 71-year-old what would have been a heartfelt applause from the club’s supporters he had helped unite during his three years of mandate.

Warnock took over in October 2016 with Cardiff fighting near the foot of the table, transforming the team into the Premier League in 2018.

But more than that, he healed the Bluebirds after a troubled period of rebranding, uniform color changes and off-field controversies that had divided the club and its fan base.

Warnock admitted before this match that it would have been an exciting occasion if the fans had been able to attend so that, on empty ground, he could focus on trying to beat a Cardiff team that he helped build.

It was the kind of game Warnock has become famous for throughout his long career: physical, occasionally short-tempered, and with the ball spending most of his time in the air.

On the rare occasions when he remained on the ground, Cardiff created the most opportunities, with Moore, Harry Wilson and Josh Murphy closing in.

But in true Warnock style, his team absorbed that pressure and made his only first-half attack count, with Saville heading from the corner of Marcus Tavernier.

Boro carried more attacking threat after the break, with Tavernier leading the best of his chances wide.

At the other end, Cardiff continued to test goalkeeper Marcus Bettinelli, who made a particularly good save to deny Will Vaulks from long range.

Fighting fire with fire, the hosts went more and more direct, hitting a series of long balls into the box for Moore and bringing in another great striker, Robert Glatzel, to add even more height to their attack.

He did the trick from a corner in the 70th minute when Moore headed firmly for goal, Glatzel fired up and Ojo slid in to score from close range.

Liverpool’s loan came close to scoring his second and Cardiff’s at the end and, after he dragged a deflected shot, Moore also came close.

But it wasn’t, Middlesbrough stood firm to make sure Warnock had at least one point to show for his return to Cardiff.