Cardiff City 1-0 Derby County: Late Uche Ikpeazu strike earns Bluebirds hard-fought win

A dramatic late winner from super sub Uche Ikpeazu earned Cardiff City a battling 1-0 win over Derby County in the Welsh capital.

It was a real fistfight in the drizzling rain at Cardiff City Stadium and either side could have grabbed a winner as the game ticked towards its conclusion.

But it was that man with the Midas touch, Ikpeazu, who proved the match-winner, seizing on his only real chance in the 85th minute to steer home Perry Ng's cross and earn City the win.

It moves the Bluebirds up to 18th in the table and, importantly, 18 points away from that dreaded drop zone. No doubt Steve Morison and Co will breathe a little easier now following that result.

Cardiff's side was back to full strength, with all the players back fighting fit after the weekend bug which struck down half a dozen of the squad.

Jordan Hugill came in alongside Isaak Davies to shore up the frontline, while Will Vaulks, Rubin Colwill and James Collins were out of the squad completely after starting against Fulham owing to illness.

Crucially, of course, Ikpeazu had recovered from the

It provided Cardiff fans with a boost before kick-off, but the enthusiasm was quickly zapped out of them when Derby controlled the opening exchanges.

Truth told, it was the worst start to a match Cardiff have had in quite some time. The Rams looked quick, hungry and up for it. The Bluebirds, by contrast, were vapid, ponderous and frustrated.

The only moment which threatened to spark the home fans into life was when a cross dropped to Tommy Doyle 30 yards out and the midfielder belted a stunning volley towards goal before it pinged into the underside of the crossbar and away from danger.

Festy Ebosele on the Derby flank gave Joel Bagan a torrid time of it, dribbling the