Blackburn Rovers vs Cardiff City. Sky Bet Championship.
Ewood ParkAttendance11,670.
Report and highlights from the Sky Bet Championship clash between Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City at Ewood Park as a hat-trick from Ben Brereton Diaz saw Tony Mowbray's side record an emphatic victory.
Saturday 25 September 2021 18:25, UK
Ben Brereton Diaz scored his first hat-trick for Blackburn in a 5-1 demolition of Cardiff in the Sky Bet Championship at Ewood Park.
The Chilean was the standout performer in an afternoon when Rovers were comprehensively the better side, set on their way in a ruthless first half that yielded three goals.
A composed finish by Sam Gallagher broke the deadlock before Brereton Diaz's first-half double, which could not have been more contrasting. His sumptuous volley just after the half-hour doubled the advantage before he bundled home the third in added time at the end of the first 45 minutes.
Tyrhys Dolan marked his 50th Rovers appearance with a well-taken fourth in the 53rd minute, before Sean Morrison's headed consolation five minutes later.
However, Brereton Diaz notched his hat-trick at the end from the penalty spot to make it seven goals for the campaign - equalling his tally for last season.
Rovers remain in the top six after a fifth game without defeat, but were helped by a shocking display from Mick McCarthy's men, who succumbed to their third successive defeat.
Gallagher and Brereton Diaz went close early on but Rovers were indebted to Ryan Nyambe, who cleared Morrison's header off the line after the defender reacted quickest to Thomas Kaminski's initial save from Aden Flint.
Rovers went in front after 24 minutes when Gallagher beat the offside trap to latch onto John Buckley's pass, before controlling instantly and calmly slotting beyond Dillon Phillips.
It was almost 2-0 in the 30th minute when Daniel Ayala's thumping header cannoned off the woodwork. However, the hosts did not have to wait long to double the advantage as two minutes later Dolan's inch-perfect cross was met by Brereton Diaz, who volleyed emphatically into the bottom left corner.
Gallagher fired wide soon after but the third came in the second minute of stoppage-time and it was a comedy of errors as Brereton Diaz was inadvertently played in by Will Vaulks. The striker's mishit shot squirmed under Phillips but Curtis Nelson's attempted clearance hit the Chilean forward and bounced in from close range.
The Cardiff supporters could not contain their anger at half-time and McCarthy rang the changes - but the visitors conceded a fourth soon in the 53rd minute when Brereton Diaz's searching cross was beautifully cushioned by Gallagher for the onrushing Dolan, who took a touch before slotting beyond Phillips.
The shell-shocked visitors got themselves on the scoresheet five minutes later when Morrison found space to glance his second of the season into the far corner from six yards.
Although Kaminski had to tip over from Mark Harris, it was Rovers who added to their tally in the 90th minute when Phillips brought down Reda Khadra and Brereton Diaz placed his penalty into the bottom corner to round off a satisfying afternoon.
Blackburn's Tony Mowbray: "The starting point is his work rate. Strikers obviously always get the glory of scoring goals but he's a kid who works his socks off for this team, up and down, up and down. He's not playing down the middle, he's not the Adam Armstrong centre-forward who is there to finish things off. He's working extraordinarily hard tracking full backs - or wing-backs as it was today. So the physical output has been amazing really.
"The fact that he's developing his finishing technique…I saw somewhere this week, he was talking about how hard he works coming in off that left on his right foot and trying to bend balls in the far corner or reverse them back into the near post. I'm just delighted he's getting the rewards for all the hard work he does, as they all do to be honest. The training sessions are less group training sessions and more individual and the team are seeing the benefit of that."
Cardiff's Mick McCarthy: "We started the game well in the first 20-25 minutes and had the best chances. I was really pleased. Their goal was offside. That does happen in the game, but what we can't do is capitulate like we did.
"It sounds like an excuse but he's offside. It gives them momentum and puts us on the back foot, but what we can't do is concede again. That could have been avoided, - and then the third goal at half-time could have been avoided as well, and the game has run away from us."
