Leicester 0 - 1 Cardiff

Peter Whittingham's stunning free-kick handed Cardiff City the edge over Leicester City in their Championship play-off semi-final first leg.

The Championship's top scorer struck his 24th goal of the season 15 minutes from time curling left-footed from 25 yards in off Chris Weale's near post.

Michael Chopra had earlier hit a post for Cardiff while Leicester's Matt Fryatt squandered a late chance.

The Foxes also had three penalty shouts denied by referee Alan Wiley.

Fryatt's missed opportunity was one of a host of chances for the rampant hosts in a frantic final 10 minutes as Leicester had two of those penalty appeals rejected and keeper David Marshall made two top-class saves.

Substitute Fryatt sprinted through one-on-one as he threatened to capitalise on a tangle between Darcy Blake and Kevin McNaughton but Marshall remained on his feet and beat out the Foxes top scorer's shot.

Cardiff's goal led a charmed life late on as Leicester's pressure intensified as Paul Gallagher curled a right-foot shot wide of Marshall's far post before the same man had a shot blocked in time added on.

Scottish international Marshall had to be at his best again with virtually the last kick of the game as he somehow clawed Alex Bruce's close-range bullet header from Gallagher's in-swinging left-wing corner.

While Marshall was Cardiff's unsung hero at one end, Whittingham stole the show at the other as the Bluebirds winger fired in a goal-of-the-season contender when it really mattered.
Leicester's Jay Spearing and Cardiff's Stephen McPhail battle for possession
Leicester's Jay Spearing and Cardiff's Stephen McPhail battle for possession

Whittingham's desire has often been criticised in previous seasons but his eye for a goal - and timing - cannot be questioned as his beautiful left-foot strike has fired Cardiff to the brink of their first Championship play-off final.

A Wembley showpiece with either Blackpool or Nottingham Forest on 22 May and a shot at money-spinning promotion to the Premier League - potentially banking a £90m jackpot for the debt-ridden Welsh club - is now more than just a dream.

Games of such importance and high stakes are usually fraught, tense chess matches but this was an end-to-end cracker and a superb advert for English football's second-tier.

The excellent Jay Bothroyd had the first-chance as the Cardiff striker held off and turned Bruce before firing narrowly wide of Chris Weale's left-hand post from 25 yards.

But Leicester, roared on by a capacity 29,165 crowd, began to assert authority as Cardiff conceded a string of corners and needless free-kicks in dangerous positions.

And it was only a lack of Leicester accuracy that saved the Bluebirds' blushes - most notably Jack Hobbs' misguided header away from goal after another tantalising inswinging Martyn Waghorn corner.

But the visitors, who boast the Championship's best away record outside of the top-two, always looked an attacking threat and targetman Bothroyd was, as ever, their attacking fulcrum.

And the former Arsenal trainee set-up strike partner Chopra after skipping past three defenders but Chopra, on the right-hand-side of the box, dragged his shot just wide of Leicester's far post.

606: DEBATE
Only half-time. Chance for the Foxes to suck on a few of their glacier mints and remain cool

ToweringSeasider

And Chopra went even closer towards the conclusion of an end-to-end first-half as the former England under-21 international made a late surge into the box to flick Chris Burke's teasing, low right-wing cross on to keeper Weale's left-hand-post.

Richie Wellens fired just wide for Leicester as the hosts regained a little of their lost momentum just after the break but boss Nigel Pearson was left raging after his side were denied a host of spot-kicks.

Wellens' deep right-wing cross was handled by Cardiff full-back McNaughton, who also bundled over striker Waghorn, but referee Wiley turned down the double protest.

The Staffordshire official then waved away Leicester shouts when Stephen McPhail seemed to handle in the area late on and in the dying minutes when Gallagher's cross was blocked by a combination of captain Mark Hudson's leg and arm.

But Whittingham's beauty won the battle of the Championship's form teams although the promotion battle will only be concluded on Cardiff's home turf on Wednesday.

The Bluebirds, though, will feel a tiny step closer to maybe ending their 48-year absence from the top-flight after just their second win at Leicester in 31 years.

And while Whittingham was quiet for most of the game, he spoke up when it mattered most for Cardiff and the strike was fitting for arguably the club's most important in their 119-year history.

But experienced Bluebirds boss Jones will be wary of the wounded Foxes as Nigel Pearson's side had won their previous five.