Nathan Jones branded the performance of his Charlton Athletic side as “inept” after a 3-1 loss at Cardiff City.
The scoreline in South Wales did not reflect the gulf in performance between the two sides.
Jack Moylan, the outstanding player on the afternoon, opened and completed the scoring at Cardiff City Stadium.
Dane Yousef Salech had put Cardiff into a 2-0 lead after 24 minutes before Tyreece Campbell’s fifth goal of the season cut the deficit shortly before the half-hour mark.
The hosts had 27 shots – eight on target. With better finishing it could have been a heavier loss for the Addicks, who have not won since the end of August.
Charlton have taken three points from a possible 15 with their last two road trips ending in comprehensive reverses.
Nathan Jones before the match at Cardiff/Picture: Kyle Andrews
Jones did not dial down the criticism post-match.
“Disappointing is an understatement,” he said. “The positives were (Arthur) Okonkwo, (Miles) Leaburn and the three clear cut chances we had. Apart from that we were out-battled, out-passed and out-run for the majority of the game.
“I just didn’t recognise some of the players out there. I take full responsibility, because I prepared the team. But stuff that we prepare and that we do on a regular basis, I didn’t see today.
“You can’t build a performance if you don’t work hard, if you don’t press, if you don’t get on second balls and you don’t do the basics well. When you do win the ball back, eventually, you just keep giving it away. Some of the times were unopposed and we didn’t show any quality. Those things mean you’re in for a tough afternoon.”
Jones made two changes at half-time, replacing Tyler Bindon and Millenic Alli with Amari’i Bell and Timothy Ouma, as the Charlton boss moved from a 4-2-3-1 formation to 5-3-2.
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