Steve Morison is adamant Cardiff City should have been awarded a penalty during their frustrating goalless draw at home to Preston North End.
The Bluebirds had a staggering 21 shots on goal, with Joe Ralls coming closest after curling an effort onto the post just after half-time. It means Cardiff have scored just once in their last five games in all competitions, and concerns over the effectiveness of their firepower will likely increase heading into the final week of the transfer window.
However, Morison believes the standard of the performance against the Lilywhites shows his team are moving in the right direction.
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"It was an excellent performance," he said. "We just didn't cap it off with a goal. They defended their box really well and if we play like that, we'll win more than we lose.
"At the end of the day, I've said it many times, performance comes first and the result will follow. The performance was excellent. To a man we were fantastic. We just didn't quite get that one to fall for us, or for someone to have a moment, although we did have that moment with one of their defenders diving saved it to stop it from going in."
Morison insists his side should have been handed a spot-kick just after the interval after Rubin Colwill's effort appeared to strike the arm of Preston's Liam Lindsay. However, he admits Ryan Lowe's men deserved credit for the way they defended in the capital.
"If you look at the chance Rubin has, he bends it and the guy puts his hand out and it hits his hand. Otherwise it's going in the bottom corner.
"I think everyone in our team had a chance today. They [Preston] put their bodies on the line, they defended really well. They defended the crosses really, really well. It was just one of those days."
Cardiff welcome Luton Town to Cardiff City Stadium on Tuesday night (August 30), and Morison believes there were enough positives in Saturday's stalemate to suggest his side are capable of putting goals, and points, on the board.
"I thought the lads were brave. I thought they showed good intensity from the start. We mixed our game up. We went short, we went long, we went round, we went through. The ball just didn't hit the back of the net."
