This Cardiff City v Wolves flashpoint is the most iconic Championship moment since Troy Deeney's play-off heroics: View | OneFootball

Cardiff City welcomed a high-flying Wolves side to the Cardiff City Stadium on April 6th 2018 in a game that would prove pivotal to both sides' promotion chances.

The Bluebirds were in second place, five points clear of Fulham in third with just five games left, so a win here could have really bolstered their automatic promotion hopes under Neil Warnock. A point would have been enough to seal play-offs for Cardiff, which would have given them some security had they failed to gain automatic promotion.

Wolves on the other hand were top of the league and a win in Cardiff would have put them 9 points clear of the Bluebirds. It wouldn't be enough to crown them as champions officially, but everyone involved knew there would be no catching Nuno Espírito Santo's men if they were to win.

This particular fixture and its infamous aftermath would become one of the most iconic moments in Championship history, and become the most iconic moment since Troy Deeney's play-off goal in 2013.

We all remember what happened on that occasion. Troy Deeney scoring in added time to take Watford to the play-off final after Leicester City's Anthony Knockaert had seen his potentially tie-winning penalty saved by Manuel Almunia just moments before.

Here we'll take a look back at another one of the most iconic moments in Championship history...

Cardiff 0-1 Wolves

With the game being played under the floodlights on a Friday night in front of the Sky cameras, it had all the hallmarks of a classic Championship encounter. 29,317 fans packed into the Cardiff City Stadium, a record league crowd for the Bluebirds at the time.

Despite being the top two sides in the division, both sides had vastly different playing styles. Cardiff under Warnock adopted a long-ball, direct approach while the visitors dominated possession.

In truth, the game was a cagey, nervous encounter with both sides canceling each other out for the most part. It was going to take something special to break the deadlock and Wolves' midfielder Ruben Neves did exactly that in the 67th minute.

The Portuguese man scored a free-kick from 25 yards out with just over 20 minutes remaining to send the Wolves' faithful into raptures and to give his side the lead.

However, the drama was only just getting started. In added time, Wolves captain Conor Coady was deemed to have fouled Cardiff's Anthony Pilkington in the area and the home side were awarded a penalty. Gary Madine stepped up but saw his effort saved by John Ruddy in the Wolves goal.

It didn't stop there either; deep into added time, Cardiff's Icelandic midfielder Aron Gunnarsson was fouled by Ivan Cavaleiro and referee Mike Dean awarded Cardiff a second penalty in added time. This time Junior Hoilett stepped up, and despite sending Ruddy the wrong way, his effort hit the bar, sparking wild celebrations from the Wolves players and management.

What happened next?

As the full-time whistle blew, the Wolves bench ran onto the field of play to celebrate with Ruddy in front of the Cardiff fans, leaving Cardiff boss Warnock furious with Wolves boss Espírito Santo.

After the celebrations had died down, the Portuguese boss made an attempt to shake Warnock's hand and apologise for the way he'd celebrated, but Warnock was having none of it.

The Cardiff boss made his way around the Cardiff City turf, thanking the fans for their support with Espírito Santo following him, attempting to shake his hand. Warnock refused to shake his hand, citing a lack of class shown in Wolves' celebrations, with a few expletives aimed at the Wolves boss in the meantime.

What did they say?

The Wolves boss told Sky Sports, "It happened at Middlesbrough and it happened again today. I have to say I'm sorry, I was talking to an assistant and he told me in Britain we [don't] do that.

"But I've arrived here and I love this country and I love the football. Last year I was coaching in the Champions League and now I'm in the Championship and I'm very proud of what I'm doing.

"I want to be a gentleman to all the managers, I'm sorry to [Middlesbrough boss] Tony Pulis and I'm very sorry to Neil Warnock. It was not my intention to be disrespectful but it's very difficult in the last minute when there is a penalty and your goalkeeper [saves it], you have to celebrate, if I'm being honest.

"Once again I'm sorry and I'll try to avoid it. I'll go to his office now and if he gives me a moment I'll try to explain it."

Meanwhile, Warnock said, "I don't accept it at all and I think it's totally out of order. I think he was a total disgrace, I used strong words and I meant every one of them. He's got to learn that in British football you have manners and a bit of class when you've won a game. You've got to learn that I'm afraid.

"I don't think I'll go into my office until after he's gone. I don't want to se him tonight if I'm honest. I thought it was a great game and it didn't need to end like that."

Wolves would go onto win the title, while the Bluebirds would finish 2nd, gaining automatic promotion. Despite the pair making up in the years that have followed, this incident will always go down as one of the most iconic Championship moments in history.