‘A tough ask’ – Cardiff City midfielder not expected to play before the end of the season
by Oliver Dixon
Football insider
29th March 2021
it will be ‘a tough ask’ for Lee Tomlin to be involved for Cardiff City between now and the end of the season after he has only made one start for the whole of this season.
Mick McCarthy will need every player fit and ready to give everything they have if the Welsh club are to make the play-offs this season.
Cardiff City are eyeing a spot in the Championship play-offs. They are currently in eighth position and are just four points off Reading in sixth with eight games left to play.
Every game matters for Mick McCarthy’s side now, as they look to narrow the gap on the sides above them, get into the top six and stay there until after the final day.
They will also want to have a fully fit squad at their disposal to help their chances of achieving their ultimate goal. But according to reports, one player who is expected to miss out is midfielder Lee Tomlin.
The Cardiff boss has insisted that Tomlin is ‘still not up to speed in terms of the level of fitness he expects from his players’.
"Way off the standard of fitness I expect from my players", said the Cardiff boss.
The 32-year-old has been a regular in the U23 setup in order to improve his fitness whilst still getting valuable minutes in competitive games.
Tomlin was expected to be back in the first team by at least the end of February after six months of, but there seems the problem as the midfielder seems to be struggling with his fitness.
The former Middlesbrough and Bournemouth man has only made five appearances this season in all competitions, with only one of those being a start. He has scored once, in the 2-1 defeat to Reading early in the campaign and has got himself sending off. However, he has not played a minute in the first-team since October.
Even if Tomlin was to now return to full fitness and get up to McCarthy’s strict standards, he still finds himself down the pecking order behind Wales international duo Harry Wilson and Jonny Williams.
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