Port Vale

Attendance: 4,390 including 313 visiting supporters
Tuesday 26th August 2014 
At Vale Park 
Capital One Cup
Port Vale v Cardiff City 

A wonder strike from Vale midfielder Michael O’Connor wasn’t enough to see Vale through to the third round of the Capital One Cup as Cardiff City left Vale Park with a 3-2 win under their belts.

 minute lead.^thO’Connor’s unstoppable shot from just inside the Cardiff half levelled the scores after Joe Ralls had given the visitors a 26

Cardiff put themselves back in the driving seat when Frederico Macheda fired home from close range on 59 minutes as the visitors had the better of things in the second period.

 minute when he slotted home a third for the visitors, ending any hopes of Vale progressing in the competition.^thMacheda finished the home side off in the 79

Michael Brown did make the scoreline more respectable when he turned to fire home his second goal in Vale colours in the third minute of stoppage time, but it was all too late for Micky Adam’s men.

Adams had promised changes for the visit of Cardiff City and he was true to his word, making seven changes from the eleven who started against Notts County three days earlier.

The Vale boss took the opportunity to play Chris Neal, Adam Yates, Chris Robertson, Steve Jennings, Michael Brown, Louis Dodds and Colin Daniel.

On the bench after starting Vale’s previous match were Sam Johnson, Fredi Veseli, Richard Duffy, Ben Williamson, Mark Marshall, Chris Lines - Chris Birchall, not making the bench against the Bluebirds.

The visitors team was totally unrecognisable from the side they put out at Molyneux at the weekend when they were beaten 1-0 by Wolves – their first defeat of the season.

Despite all of the changes made by Ole Gunnar Solksjar Cardiff still had plenty of quality on show, yet there was little between the two sides in the opening exchanges.

Vale went close to taking an early lead, however, when Louis Dodds latched onto the ball inside the box to hit a half volley, which Simon Moore in the visitors’ goal did well to save, diving to his left to push away.

 minute.^thVale defended well to keep the visitors at bay, with Cardiff edging things in terms of possession, but Ole Gunnar Solksjar’s men eventually got their rewards in the 26

GOAL: and the Cardiff man took a couple of strides towards goal and smashed a 20 yard shot past the diving Chris Neal.JOE RALLS Michael O’Connor couldn’t quite get the ball under control under pressure from 

Michael Brown went close to an equaliser with a low drive which was a yard wide of Moore’s right hand post a few minutes later.

Vale didn’t have too long to wait, though had they been forced to wait a week it would have been well worth it, so spectacular was the goal that put Vale back on level terms.

GOAL: elected to go for goal from all of 40 yards and it flew into Moore’s top right hand corner.MICHAEL O’CONNOR Tom Pope was fouled just over the halfway line and Vale were awarded a free kick. Carl Dickinson took it short and 

Moore was well beaten, but in fairness to the Bluebirds’ stopper, no ‘keeper in the land would have saved it, such was the ferocity of the shot.

Cardiff could have retaken the lead just before the interval when Javi Guerra turned sharply inside a crowded Vale penalty area, but shot well over the crossbar from 10 yards out.

The visitors piled on the pressure early in the second half and Chris Neal was called upon to make one particularly good save to keep them out.

GOAL:FREDERICO MACHEDA. minute when a low cross from the left by Declan John was converted at the far post by ^th It came as no surprise when Cardiff retook the lead in the 59

 minute. On came Ben Williamson, Chris Lines and Steve Jennings, replacing Louis Dodds, Michael O’Connor and Steve Jennings.^stVale made a triple substitution in the 71

GOAL: raced through the middle and rounded Chris Neal before slotting home his second and the visitors’ third goalMACHEDA minute when ^th The visitors put an end to any Vale hopes of getting something from the game in the 79

 minute when he lifted his close range shot onto the crossbar and Chris Neal pounced on the loose ball before anybody could react.^thMacheda was denied his hat-trick in the 88

GOAL: turned just inside the box to fire past Moore in the Cardiff goal.MICHAEL BROWN There was still time for another goal, however, and this time it went Vale’s way when 

PORT VALE:Sam Johnson, Fredieric Veseli, Richard Duffy, Ben Williamson, Byron Moore, Mark Marshall, Chris Lines.  SUBS:Chris Neal, Adam Yates, Chris Robertson, Ryan McGivern, Carl Dickinson, Steve Jennings, Michael O’Connor, Michael Brown, Louis Dodds, Tom Pope, Colin Daniel.   

CARDIFF CITY:  Guido Burgstaller, Etien Velikonja, Kadeem Harris, Ben Wilson, Tom James, Tommy O’Sullivan, Kane Owen  SUBS:Simon Moore, Juan Cala, Kagisho Dikhacoi, Declan John, Kim Bo-Kyung, Frederico Macheda, Magnus Wolff Eikrem, Joe Ralls, Javi Guerra, Deji Oshilaja, Jazzi Barnum-Bobb.