The proof Cardiff City are doing things differently

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The proof Cardiff City are doing things differently

Postby Forever Blue » Sat Jul 14, 2018 9:44 am

The proof Cardiff City are doing things differently under Neil Warnock as Premier League plans offer insight into what the future holds.


Nothing is being left to chance under the Yorkshireman

By Scott Johnson


14 July 2018

If you needed any proof that Cardiff are doing things a little differently these days, then the fact that they have agreed new terms with 11 players this summer, a whole team’s worth, is not a bad place to start.

In the recent past, this has been an area the club have neglected, to their detriment.


Back in 2010, Joe Ledley, who had progressed through the ranks at the club, ran his contract down and left to join Celtic as a free agent.

The fact that he did not join an English club also cost Cardiff a fortune in compensation, as overseas clubs, including Scotland, are not required to pay a penny in this regard.

A year later, Adam Matthews joined Ledley in Glasgow, with Jay Bothroyd and Chris Burke also leaving on free transfers.

Since then, Cardiff have been through a period of instead terminating contracts in order to shift bad eggs, but since the appointment of Russell Slade, financial necessity has ensured that they have had to be far more thrifty.

Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock (right) and the Cardiff City players celebrate winning their promotion to the Premier League
Since Neil Warnock’s arrival, little has been left to chance and this summer, the club have not only got the present in hand, but also have half an eye on the future.

The saga of Junior Hoilett’s new contract dragged on for most of the summer and his three-year deal came as a massive relief, but several more soon followed.

Joe Ralls, Callum Paterson and Sean Morrison all agreed new four-year deals, while Nathaniel Mendez-Laing signed on until 2021.

Lee Peltier and Matthew Connolly, who had both entered the final year of their existing deals, saw their terms extended by an extra year, while Brian Murphy, who was technically out of contract, was awarded another year.

With Joe Bennett and Neil Etheridge signing on for three more years earlier in the window, the final piece of the jigsaw was Aron Gunnarsson, who like Hoilett was heading out of contract and was not short of suitors.

The club revealed that he had verbally agreed to stay on and that was soon confirmed in writing, much to the delight of everyone.

The fact that Gunnarsson’s contract is only for another year was a little bit disappointing. It gives the impression that the agreement is a marriage of convenience, but is a marriage all the same.





' Cardiff City's Aron Gunnarsson '

Who knows what would have happened had he starred at the World Cup, but after a season blighted by injuries, he did not look fully fit in Russia and maybe the expected interest did not materialise.

Gunnarsson has already stated that he does not fancy any more Championship football and who can blame him. The endless grind of physical contests, twice a week take their toll, especially for such a physical, combative midfielder.

He is clearly keeping his options open in the hope that an impressive season will either keep Cardiff up or attract interest from elsewhere and a lucrative final contract.

This leaves Cardiff in a very healthy position, with all their key assets tied down on long-term deals. Whether or not their contracts have relegation-related clauses remains to be seen, but hopefully that will not be an issue any time soon anyway.

Actually, not all of their star turns have been accounted for. It was strange to see the club tie up so many less ends, but not address Bruno Ecuele Manga’s situation.

As it stands, the Gabonese centre-back can start talking to overseas clubs in January or walk away next summer.

Like Gunnarsson and Hoilett, Manga took things to the wire last summer, agreeing a new two-year deal against all odds.

The expectation was that the reported £5m signing would depart, but Warnock convinced him to stick around and he proved an influential figure in Cardiff’s eventual promotion.

History appears to be repeating and maybe Manga has no interest in discussing new terms at present.

Like Gunnarsson, he may be keen to keep his options open and that is his right.

Now that Cardiff are in the Premier League, it certainly feels like less of a pressing concern than it did twelve months ago, when the budget was far tighter.

Also, Jazz Richards has only one year left too. Having struggled for fitness ever since joining, it feels as though Cardiff and Warnock have yet to see the best of the Welsh wing-back.

Here’s hoping he has a run of luck this year and can finally show his true worth. For a club that has felt unstable for so long, stability has now become the watchword and it’s very reassuring.

Everyone finally seems to be on the same page and the prospect of the forthcoming campaign is impossibly exciting.

Cardiff still have a few areas of their squad that require reinforcing, specifically competition for Kenneth Zohore.

There will also need to be some degree of trimming. They can only register 25 players in the Premier League, so half a dozen or so will need to depart and hopefully permanently rather than on loan, recouping some of their expenditure which can in turn be reinvested.


Other than that, Cardiff look in good shape. Who knows how they will adapt to the top flight. Maybe they will find themselves out of their depth, or maybe they will make waves.

Either way, there is so much goodwill at present that the only guarantee is that it will be fun finding out.
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The proof Cardiff City are doing things differently

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Re: The proof Cardiff City are doing things differently

Postby Carlossus » Sat Jul 14, 2018 2:19 pm

Good appraisal now lets enjoy the ride
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