Mitchell Clark (left) of Port Vale and Chris Willock of Cardiff CityRex Features

Cardiff finished bottom of the Championship last season, while Port Vale were second in League Two

Dafydd Pritchard
BBC Sport Wales

Cardiff City were lucky to escape with a point after being outplayed in Thursday's goalless draw at Port Vale in League One.

Vale overpowered their opponents physically and came close to scoring in the first half through a Jesse Debrah header and a misdirected clearance from Cardiff captain Calum Chambers which hit the post.

The visitors were no better after the interval, struggling to cope with Vale's set-pieces and offering next to nothing going forward.

Home captain George Byers headed against the bar from an offside position as Darren Moore's men continued to dominate but had to be content with a first point of the season at the second attempt.

Cardiff had shown promise in their first game under new head coach Brian Barry-Murphy on the opening weekend, as the youngest Bluebirds line-up for a league game this century beat Peterborough United with a fluent attacking display.

But their visit to Vale Park was a stark reminder of the challenges facing the Welsh club in League One this season.

What was the main talking point?

This was a first league meeting between these sides for 22 years - the last time Cardiff had been in the third tier.

Even last season there were two divisions between them, but the gap disappeared when Vale won promotion from League Two and Cardiff came tumbling down from the Championship.

There was no evidence of any enduring gulf in class here. In fact, it was Vale who looked likeliest to score as they roughed up their opponents.

Byers and Debrah both headed wide from first-half Ronan Curtis corners, while Chambers was inches away from scoring an own goal, one of many mistakes in a shaky display from the former Arsenal and England centre-back.

The set-piece barrage continued after the break, while Cardiff barely figured as an attacking force.

The sight of an isolated Yousef Salech told its own tale, the Bluebirds striker with blood on his face having caught a stray boot in the first half from Debrah, who manhandled the Dane throughout - a running battle which summed up the game.

Which players stood out?

Vale right wing-back Mitch Clark excelled in and out of possession, constantly turning defence into attack with his direct and energetic running.

The former Wales youth international had the ball in the net at one stage in the second half but the flag had already been raised for offside.

Curtis' set-pieces caused havoc for Cardiff, but his team-mates could not provide the finishes his deliveries warranted.

Debrah and fellow centre-back Connor Hall also did a solid job of repelling the few attacking attempts that Cardiff offered.

'We were lucky to get a point' - what they said

Port Vale manager Darren Moore told BBC Radio Stoke:

"I think it was a really good performance from the team. We got it right. If there was one small critique, and I mean small, it was the final third when we got into those threatening areas.

"If we create chances like that, on another night we would have got a goal or two. We were the team in the ascendancy and the one creating chances.

"Credit to the boys for nullifying an excellent team like Cardiff. There will be areas where we can learn from tonight."

Cardiff head coach Brian Barry-Murphy told BBC Radio Wales:

"We'll definitely take the clean sheet and the point. There were parts of the performance we'd like to be better, especially in front of an incredible travelling support.

"We've got no complaints. I thought we were lucky to get a point based on how well Port Vale played and elements of our performance need to be better.

"Our positioning was wrong, we were rushed… and our composure in wide areas was not great. That's not just the wide players, that's the whole team. The final ball, the final shot wasn't at a high enough level."

What's next for both teams?

Port Vale travel to fellow League One side Blackpool in the Carabao Cup first round on Tuesday at 19:45 BST, and at the same time Cardiff host League Two Swindon Town.

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