Cardiff City players were 'hiding' in Swansea derby defeat, says Erol Bulut
- Published
Manager Erol Bulut has accused some Cardiff City players of "hiding" during their derby defeat at Swansea City.
The Bluebirds lost 2-0 on Saturday, having been thoroughly outplayed during the first half.
Bulut made a raft of changes during and after the break, with midfielders David Turnbull and Manolis Siopis among those making way.
"If you are hiding then you can't get out from the pressing. You have to ask for the ball," said Bulut.
"This was not there in the first half. That's why I made changes in the second half, bringing two players on and we managed it a little bit better.
"Today, with this pressing Swansea did against us, we wanted to keep the ball in midfield, but we didn't ask for the ball in midfield. We were hiding too much in the midfield."
Saturday's defeat was Cardiff's fifth from six south Wales derbies.
The Bluebirds had been aiming to earn their first derby league double having beaten Swansea 2-0 last September.
But despite coming into this latest encounter off the back of four successive wins in the Championship - including an impressive triumph over high-flying Ipswich Town a week earlier - Cardiff were soundly beaten by their arch rivals.
"As a manager you always ask for the best from the players, but you cannot have every game the same," said Bulut.
"Sometimes it happens like this. It's disappointing we couldn't do the double. This would have been great for the team and the club, but you cannot get everything."