'No other intention' - Leeds United fans warning as rival boss declares team plan amid ultimate Whites praise
Cardiff face Leeds at Elland Road on Saturday afternoon.
Cardiff City boss Omer Riza has served up ultimate Leeds United praise but with a Whites warning and Elland Road crowd comment ahead of Saturday’s visit to the Whites.
Riza’s side will provide the next hurdle in United’s bid for automatic promotion in Saturday afternoon’s 3pm kick-off at LS11 which the table-topping Whites and 16th-placed Bluebirds are approaching at opposite ends of the Championship ladder.
As part of rich praise for Daniel Farke’s hosts, Riza admitted Leeds might be the best team in the division but the Bluebirds boss has issued a reminder about how his own team are unbeaten in eight.
The 45-year-old manager now says his team have “no other intention” than going to Leeds and getting a result, declaring that it will be up to Leeds to “deal with” the home crowd getting on top of them in the event of his plan succeeding.
“I think we’re in good shape," said Riza at his pre-match press conference, as quoted by the club’s website.
"We’re coming into it off the back of eight games without losing and we’ve moved away from the area we don’t want to be in.
“Our performances have been ok, the boys are in a good place and we’ve brought in a few additions.
“I think we’re in the strongest position we can be in going into a game against Leeds. I say it all the time, but we have no other intention than to go there and get a result. That hasn’t changed.
“It’s going to be tough. They’re one of the best sides in the league, if not the best. We’ve got our challenges in front of us, but like with everything, we’ll strategise and we’ll make sure we do our due diligence in and out of possession.
"We’ll try and make sure we go there with a solid, disciplined mindset and I think we’ve got players that can hurt them if they make mistakes. That’s what we’ll be looking for.
“We know the crowd there as well; if they’re not happy with their own players they can get on top of them, so that’s for Leeds to deal with. We just have to go there and work hard, like we have been, and try and get a result.
"We’re on a good run, the boys are in a good place. We’re coming up against one of the best teams in the league, who can cause you a lot of problems. If you can do it against them, you can do it against anyone - that’s the mindset. That’s how we’ll be approaching the game."