To the left, to the left – Cardiff City’s strengths lie on the flank to the leftNow that Junior Hoilett has put pen to paper, that knot in my stomach has started to loosen. It was never in doubt he said, but it didn’t feel like that.
The understanding was that Hoilett was waiting to see if Neil Warnock would stay on, but when extended terms were agreed, he looked no closer to signing. Cardiff secured promotion and it didn’t seem to make a difference. Warnock even teased Hoilett about his unsigned contract at the victory parade, but it still took another couple of months to finally resolve.
But Hoilett is staying for another three years and that’s all that matters. He was worth the wait after all. One down, one to go, but Aron Gunnarsson has his hands full at the moment.
It was massively important that Hoilett stayed, both on and off the pitch. On it, he has become Cardiff’s creative fulcrum and while by no means irreplaceable, it would have been a psychological blow had he left. Financially it’s a big bonus too. His wages will have certainly spiked, but replacing him would have cost a small fortune and bit a significant chunk out of Warnock’s budget.
What Cardiff now have is a really rather impressive left flank. You can field any combination of Joe Bennett, Greg Cunningham, Josh Murphy and Hoilett without any compromises. There is fierce competition for places there and real strength in depth.
That is not yet the case for the right flank and surely that will be one of the next areas to be addressed.
Lee Peltier and Jazz Richards are both very good right backs, but they both struggled for fitness last season. Bruno Ecuele Manga can fill in, but you don’t want round pegs in square holes at Premier League level. You wonder whether a right back will be targeted and someone like Sam Byram, who is out of favour at West Ham and up for grabs, would certainly fit the bill.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing is the only real contender for the right wing at present and it remains to be seen if he is Premier League calibre. On his day Mendez is unplayable, but his form dipped significantly during the winter, whether that was asthma-related or just a general loss of form.
It remains to be seen whether Warnock will be tempted to field Hoilett and Murphy in the same side. Both can play on the right, although both favour the left.
Warnock has done exactly as expected thus far: brought in familiar names that seem to fit the current Cardiff ethos. Robert Snodgrass has been linked and that looks like a good fit. I worry that Cardiff may lack goals and a bit of stardust, but there is plenty of time to address those concerns.
For now, let’s just glory in Cardiff’s new left side, which looks both imposing and exciting.
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