Neil Warnock was brutally honest in his post-match assessment after Cardiff City’s devastating 2-1 home defeat against Burnley.

The Bluebirds deserved to win, they should have won, and their performance was full of character, courage and spirit.

“Heart doesn’t get you any points,” said Warnock. “I’m gutted. Two sloppy goals and we didn’t get the rub of the green. “We should have had a penalty for handball, but it depends which referee you get. Today, no chance.
“We were the far better side, but at least we’ve got a straightforward one next weekend at Wembley (v Spurs).”

Financial restraints mean Warnock’s squad are short on Premier quality, but have players who will fight for the blue shirt.

What a great finish ⚽️💙 #CityAsOne @CardiffCityFC

— Andy Campbell (@andycampbell32) September 30, 2018

The key now is for Warnock to go with the players who have most quality and can hurt the opposition, while owner Vincent Tan must help him out in the January transfer window with the cash to strengthen.

That has to include a striker and midfield player who are proven competitors at Premier League level. That won’t be easy, but if anybody can find the men needed it’s Warnock.

The players Warnock must rely on in attacking terms between now and January are Spanish midfield player Victor Camarasa, Harry Arter, Callum Paterson, Joe Ralls, Bobby Decordova-Reid and Josh Murphy.

All of them can help Cardiff stay up – I still believe they will avoid relegation – and will play key roles over the next few months.

I’d love to include Kenneth Zohore in that group, but I want to see more hunger, desire and winning mentality from a man who really could make the difference. He certainly has the ability.

Murphy showed his quality at times against Burnley, while Camarasa was a joy to watch when he played balls through the Burnley defence.

Paterson caused Burnley major problems in that number 10 role behind Kenneth Zohore and Decordova-Reid is a player capable of shining at Premier level.

When you look at the defence Bruno Manga and captain Sean Morrison should play alongside each other, while Sol Bamba os the sort of competitor you always want on your team.

The loss of Lee Peltier and Nathaniel Mendez-Laing are massive blows, but the Bluebirds have to look forward and believe in themselves.

Goalkeeper Neil Etheridge has shown he is a player who can do the job – and we haven’t even seen Alex Smithies yet.

This is not the time to give up hope. Warnock’s achievement in leading Cardiff to promotion was little short of a miracle and, as he has said: “If we go down we’ll still be in a better position next season than this club was when I arrived.”

He is spot on. Cardiff are a club on the rise and if the right decisions are made the future can be bright.

“We were the better side all the way through the game,” said Warnock. “We had to work really hard to lose that.

“We were superb apart from the goals conceded. They were simple and we should do better. We had enough opportunities in the game.

REACTION: Sam Vokes joy at landmark goal https://t.co/1llxvxTRgy

— Burnley FC (@BurnleyOfficial) September 30, 2018

“I watched Newcastle v Leicester on Saturday and there was a handball in that game, this lad had his hand in an unnatural position and it was a penalty. We don’t get them as smaller clubs, that would have changed the game.

“We need more of that from Josh Murphy. I was applauding Joe Hart’s save. It is sad and we are flat because we played so well. we have to move on and stop feeling sorry for ourselves.

“You cannot ask more of the lads, I am getting the best out of them and we would have won easily on another day, it was not to be.

“There could not have been anyone else on their side as man of the match, Joe Hart has done everything, he is a top keeper. We should have taken our opportunities.

“But how many fouls did Matt Lowton commit before he was booked? I think he was warned six times. We are down and another night drowning my sorrows.”

It certainly looked like a penalty when Paterson’s cycle kick was blocked by an arm, but the referee waved aside appeals.

Burnley manager Sean Dyche said: “I’m pleased with the resilience of our side. They put the ball in the box from literally everywhere and it knocked us out of our rhythm.

“In the second half we calmed a little bit, but we had to defend resolutely and show the desire to get a result.
“Credit to them, they get the ball forward, but I am not against that. It was effective. We couldn’t get into the game, but I was pleased with our reaction.
“This is a really tough division and we have had our fair share of knocks at the start of the season. Joe Hart was dominant, he came and dealt with a lot of balls into the box.”

Burnley goalkeeper Hart was man of the match and said: “It was a selfless performance from Sam Vokes up front.
“I’m sure the crowds flooded in from the Ryder Cup to watch this one, it was a classic.”
Sean Dyche’s men managed to get the job done, but Cardiff will feel hard done by with the amount of pressure they have put Burnley under.

The Bluebirds are without a win in eight games in all competitions this season – their worst run since 1964-65.

Today’s @premierleague man of the match Joe Hart receives his @SkySportsPL award. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/eYqEjGXES8

— Burnley FC (@BurnleyOfficial) September 30, 2018

Warnock made four changes to the side thumped 5-0 by Manchester City last time out. Paterson, Murphy, 

Zohore and Bamba started, while Burnley were unchanged from their 4-0 win against Bournemouth.

Burnley went home with the three points and a major player in that win was Johann Berg Gudmundsson. He was arguably hopeless in the first half and played a massive role in his teams win after the break.

Don’t write off the Bluebirds just yet. Cardiff, Newcastle and Huddersfield have all yet to win and this is only the third time in Premier League history that as many as three teams have failed to record a win in their opening seven games.

There is still hope in South Wales.

Cardiff City: Neil Etheridge, Bruno Manga, Sean Morrison (capt), Sol Bamba, Greg Cunningham, Joe Ralls (Gary Madine 79), Victor Camarasa, Callum Paterson, Harry Arter, Josh Murphy, Kenneth Zohore (Danny Ward 71). Subs not used: Joe Bennett, Jazz Richards, Danny Ward, Bobby Decordova-Reid, Kadeem Harris, Brian Murphy (gk).

Burnley: Joe Hart, Matthew Lowton, James Tarkowski (Kevin Long 27), Ben Mee, Charlie Taylor, Johan Berg Gudmundsson, Jack Cork, Ashley Westwood, Aaron Lennon, Matej Vydra (Chris Wood 71), Sam Vokes

Subs not used: Tom Heaton (gk), Ashley Barnes, Chris Wood, Jeff Hendrick, Steven Defour, Phil Bardsley.

Referee: Martin Atkinson

Attendance: 30,411