Cardiff substitute Yakou Meite scored with his first touch to give relegation-threatened Bluebirds a priceless 2-1 win at Blackburn.
The visitors came into the game on a run of three consecutive defeats but made a flying start through Yousef Salech’s fourth-minute header.
Yuki Ohashi levelled in the 16th minute and it stayed that way until Meite, who had been on the field for barely a minute, expertly headed home his second goal of the season 17 minutes from time.
There was confusion at the death when Rovers were awarded a penalty but it was rightly overturned and Cardiff keep themselves out of the bottom three with only their second away win of the campaign.
Blackburn’s play-off hopes are fading fast. They are winless in five and are still waiting for their first win under Valerien Ismael.
Cardiff were ahead early on and it was all too easy as Sivert Mannsverk was given time and space to measure a right-wing cross for the unmarked Salech who planted his header into the left corner.
Rovers responded with an equaliser that owed much to Tyrhys Dolan’s tenacity and Emmanuel Dennis’ near-post cross was powerfully headed beyond Ethan Horvath by Ohashi.
Buoyed by the leveller, Blackburn pushed on and created an opportunity just after the half hour but Makhtar Gueye headed over.
Cardiff were indebted to their goalkeeper for maintaining parity in first-half stoppage time when Horvath produced a stunning, one-handed save to repel Sondre Tronstad’s powerful drive.
The visitors’ top scorer Callum Robinson was wasteful at the start of the second half, curling wide from a good position, but Rovers were the ones cranking up the pressure after the interval, with Gueye’s shot deflected wide.
Dolan went close in the 65th minute, beautifully controlling the ball before turning inside Will Fish but he curled just beyond the far post.
Cardiff substitute Will Alves went even closer moments later, spinning away from two Blackburn players before whipping a shot just beyond the left upright.
They made no mistake in the 73rd minute though and Alves was involved again, sending a searching left-wing cross into the area which was met by Meite who got across his marker to glance a header past Aynsley Pears with his first touch of the game.
Blackburn were shellshocked and their pain ought to have been compounded six minutes from time when Pears denied Alves and the ball fell to Meite but the forward’s shot was cleared off the line by Hayden Carter.
The hosts thought they had a late reprieve when Gueye went down in the area and a penalty was awarded, but the assistant referee overturned, and Cardiff registered a vital win.
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