Wayne Rooney admitted it was “all about winning” after the Birmingham manager celebrated his first away victory since taking charge – 1-0 at Cardiff.
The former Manchester United and England striker admitted the result was far more important than the performance, despite praising a “gritty” display.
Juninho Bacuna’s composed finish after a rapid counter-attack on the stroke of half-time proved enough to secure Rooney a second win in 10 games as Blues manager and ended a run of eight defeats in a row away from home.
“I’m delighted with the win. The performance was good but after the run we’ve been on, it was all about winning,” said Rooney.
“We dealt with Cardiff pretty well. Their set-piece is one of the best in the league and we struggled a bit with that, but in general I thought we limited them, especially in the second half.
“The performance was nothing special but we controlled things, showed plenty of grit and showed real composure for the goal.
“I was pleased with the desire to win.
“The only disappointment was that we created a few chances in the second half to break but we didn’t take care with the final pass. That has been a theme.”
Birmingham moved up to 16th in the table but face Championship leaders Leicester next.
Rooney said: “It’s crucial that we enjoy this win and build on it because we’ve got another extremely tough game coming.
“I understand the fans’ frustration that there has been a change of manager when things were going OK, but I’m confident we are moving the club forward. But until results improve, it’s hard for the fans to believe that.”
Cardiff missed the chance to move level with sixth-placed Sunderland and instead slip to 10th.
However, there were also real concern for defender Perry Ng, who was forced off after just 13 minutes with a head injury.
“He said he couldn’t see,” said manager Erol Bulut. “I don’t know what it was and I hope it is not too serious, but he just said he couldn’t see. I must speak to the medical staff.”
Bulut, meanwhile, bemoaned a tired and lacklustre second-half display that has now seen the Bluebirds score just one goal in four games.
“It’s not just the loss but the way we lost that is most disappointing,” he said.
“We did some good things in the first half but I don’t think I want to talk about the second half. We played as individuals trying to do things but that never works, you have to be a team.
“It’s not enough what we have seen in the last two games, we have to show much more. You have to fight to the end but we did not.”
Bulut was unhappy with the timing of Bacuna’s winner, deep into first-half stoppage time.
“The game should have been finished,” he said.
Motta salutes 'solid and concrete' Juventus after derby victory over Torino
Thiago Motta hailed Juventus' "solid and concrete" display on their way to victory over Torino in Derby della Mole.
The Bianconeri claimed bragging rights in the Turin derby, with goals from Timothy Weah and Kenan Yildiz sealing all three points.
Juve climbed to third place - a point behind leaders Napoli - after extending their unbeaten start in Serie A, while earning a ninth clean sheet - the most of any side in Europe's top five leagues.
And Motta paid tribute to his players for their performance levels at the end of a busy seven days.
"It's always important to play with balance, and today, we put in an excellent performance, bringing home three precious points," he said.
"I am happy both for the result and for the level of play expressed in front of our fans, who supported us a lot. We have to thank them, as well as the boys, because it was not easy.
"It was the third game of the week, we were able to manage our energy well, and we were solid and concrete for the whole 95 minutes. A well-deserved victory."
Weah became only the second American to score for Juventus against Torino after Weston McKennie in 2020.
Next up for the Bianconeri after the international break is a showdown with AC Milan at San Siro, where Weah's father George played a starring role during the 1990s.
"Today I'm happy," he said. "We have to continue like this, because when we play like tonight, we're strong.
"Now, the match against Milan awaits us. It's important, also for me and for the history of my family."
Slot believes Liverpool have 'many challenges to come' in Premier League title race
Arne Slot envisages "many challenges to come" in Liverpool's Premier League title race, despite his side moving five points clear at the top of the table with victory on Saturday.
The Reds capitalised on Manchester City's slip at Brighton by taking all three points in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa to establish breathing space at the summit.
Darwin Nunez gave the hosts the lead at Anfield as he capitalised after a quick counter, before Mohamed Salah did the same six minutes from time to secure all three points.
While Slot was pleased by the outcome, he is aware the cushion at the top does not guarantee a smooth run in their title challenge.
"It wasn't easy, like most of our games have been now," he told TNT Sport. "Aston Villa were maybe not as aggressive as we thought they would be.
"We were patient. One thing they are very good at is set-pieces. In general, we had control over the game and scored from two counter-attacks, which is maybe not what we would expect.
"If I look at the games that are ahead, they are tough. It will be a tough season in general. Margins are small, we have a margin, but it is small. [There are] many challenges to come for us."
Slot has got off to a fine start since succeeding Jurgen Klopp as manager at the start of the season, as he became just the fourth manager to win as many as nine of his first 11 Premier League games in charge, after John Gregory, Guus Hiddink, and Carlo Ancelotti.
Liverpool now have 28 points in the league. They have only previously equalled this total once after 11 games, in their title-winning season of 2019-20 (31).
Equally, no manager has ever won more points from their first 11 games in the competition than Slot. The Dutchman is not concerned by totals or margins, however, with his focus remaining on the philosophy he wants to instil at Anfield.
"As a manager, if you come into a new club, you don't think about how many points after how many games," he told BBC Match of the Day. "You think about changing the style or keeping it as it was.
"To change the style, you have to do a lot of things on the training ground and in meetings. The only thing I have thought about is how to implement the playing style, and how to make sure the players keep working as hard as they can."
FC Cincinnati 0-0 New York City FC (5-6 on pens): Ilenic sets up Hudson River derby
New York City FC will face the New York Red Bulls for a place in the Eastern Conference final after a 6-5 penalty shootout victory over FC Cincinnati.
In a shootout during which five spot-kicks were missed, Mitja Ilenic kept his cool to slam home and get NYCFC over the line after a 0-0 draw in Ohio.
Cincinnati, last season's Supporters' Shield winners, had the better of the chances at TQL Stadium, though NYCFC did have a goal disallowed midway through the second half, with Alonso Martínez having been flagged offside.
But Nick Cushing, who this week insisted he wanted to stay at NYCFC amid reported interest from Arsenal Women, saw his team get the job done in dramatic fashion.
NYCFC goalkeeper Matt Freese, who made a crucial save to deny Luca Orellano on the half-hour mark, looked set to be the hero until his counterpart Roman Celentano thwarted Thiago Martins.
Freese's save from Gerardo Valenzuela then sparked a remarkable streak of five straight missed penalties, with Kevin O'Toole denied by Celentano, Chidozie Awaziem and Andres Perea blazing over, and Teenage Hadebe kept out by NYCFC's shot-stopper, before Ilenic finally showed how it was done.
NYCFC will now go up against their city rivals next week, while Cincinnati must lick their wounds heading into the offseason.
Data Debrief: Away form a concern for Cushing
While New York can celebrate making the Conference semi-finals, they have now won only one of their last 15 away games in all competitions.
Indeed, NYCFC have won just five of their last 41 road matches in all competitions since the start of the 2023 season.
Their meagre 0.28 expected goals (xG), compared to Cincinnati's 1.13, across the 90 minutes showed they were largely outplayed, and Cushing will be glad next week's semi-final will take place on home turf - with NYCFC the sixth seed, whereas the Red Bulls are the seventh.
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