​Cardiff City were comprehensively beaten 6-0 by Danish side FC Midtjylland as the Bluebirds began their preparations for the new Championship campaign. Boss Brian Barry-Murphy named three academy graduates in the starting lineup, with Noah Williams, Paul Moreno and Jack Sykes all included, while Yousef Salech led the attack and Alex Robertson wore the captain’s armband. Midtjylland, who are gearing up for a Europa League qualifier against Besiktas later this month and have started pre-season unbeaten after five matches, started the brighter of the two sides, who themselves finished second in their leagues last season.
The Danish Cup winners moved ahead after 20 minutes when Harry Tyrer misjudged a ball forward, allowing Valdemar Byskov to seize the chance, and Franculino, who netted 17 times last season, doubled the lead as Cardiff were caught on the counter. Viktor Bak added a third just before the break, and Cardiff had a late chance to respond on the cusp of half-time when Ollie Tanner fired a powerful effort straight at goalkeeper Elias Olafsson.
For the second half, Barry-Murphy made wholesale changes, fielding an entirely new side that included Callum Robinson in midfield and academy graduate Jac Thomas at left-back. Yet Cardiff quickly slipped further behind. In the second period, substitutes Friday Etim and Mikel Gogorza were both presented with the simplest of tap-ins, while Junior Brumado headed home Rasmus Kristensen’s cross to complete a 6-0 triumph for the visitors.
Cardiff are set to face Cork City in their second pre-season friendly on Tuesday, as they continue preparations ahead of the new campaign.