BLUEBIRDS DISMISS ‘WARNOCK FOR SUNDERLAND’ REPORTS:
BLUEBIRDS QUASH SUNDERLAND SPECULATION.. PLUS THE CONTRACT WAITING GOES ON:
ONLY three of the 24 teams who contested last season’s Championship are yet to release their retained list for next season.
Promoted Newcastle United, playoff winners Huddersfield Town... and Cardiff City.
Bluebirds fans are on tenterhooks waiting to see what the future holds for Bruno Manga, Junior Hoilett, Peter Whittingham and Kadeem Harris.
Because, while goalkeeping duo Allan McGregor and Ben Amos are set to depart the club and return to Hull City and Bolton Wanderers respectively, while injured Rhys Healey will be retained for another year, the aforementioned quartet could all play major roles for Neil Warnock next season. The only snag is whether a new contract appears on the table, and is signed.
The past few weeks and the announcement of other retained lists have shown clubs are unafraid to cast off long-serving players if they feel a change is needed.
That was certainly the case when Norwich City revealed they wouldn’t renew the contracts of John Ruddy, Sebastien Bassong and Steven Whittaker among others.
All three were club stalwarts, all three will have suitors this summer, but the club was ruthless.
So, as the list of players linked with a move to Cardiff grows longer by the day (Callum Paterson, Joe Ledley and Grant Hanley are three more recent names), who will stay at Cardiff City Stadium and who will leave?
It may simply boil down to club finances.
Taking Whittingham as a starting point, debate has been rife for months whether the stalwart of 10 years will be allowed to depart. But all the signs suggest there will be the most poignant parting of the ways in the next month. Whittingham was honoured with Cardiff City’s Outstanding Contribution Award at the end-of-season party and serenaded with songs by the club’s most staunch supporters.
There was a feeling of resignation among those fans that night that their midfield hero may finally leave. A rumoured Cardiff return for Ledley may hasten Whittingham’s exit. But, as with all these players, finances are vital and the cut-price deal on offer to Whittingham simply might not be enough to keep him, especially with only a limited first-team role on offer to ‘Whitts’ next season.
In Manga’s case, it is less a case of sentiment and more cold hard numbers, despite the Bluebirds’ fans obvious affinity for the Gabon centre back and admiration for his no-nonsense defending style, which has always proven effective.
In the last few games of the season, Manga was Cardiff’s best player, in the absence of the injured Sol Bamba. So it would be with great regret that Warnock allows the centre-back to leave.
Galatasaray are said to be among a number of high-profile summer suitors for Manga, and one of the many clubs who would be able to afford his significant wages. Warnock may therefore decree that the money is better spent elsewhere.
Manga is believed to be among the Bluebirds’ top earners and it could be financially wise to let his three-year stay in south Wales to come to an end.
Where Kadeem Harris and Junior Hoilett are concerned, Warnock has been clear. He wants them both by his side next season, with Hoilett a trusted lieutenant of the former Queens Park Rangers manager.
Hoilett’s inconsistency has been a frustration for his manager and fans alike, but there’s no better boss at getting the best from the Canadian on a more regular basis than Warnock.
The veteran boss has reiterated how confident he is that Hoilett will extend his deal, following an inspired free transfer back in October. There shouldn’t be a problem here, move along.
Harris, however, is an intriguing case. Warnock’s tenure has coincided with the winger’s (long-awaited) firstteam breakthrough. Previously a perennial fringe player whose potential was lauded by optimistic Bluebirds fans, Harris has thrived under Warnock. He’s suddenly become one of the club’s most important players. The boss has repeated his belief that Harris wouldn’t be the same player under a different manager and desperately wants the 23-year-old to stay.
And yet the winger’s dazzling displays won’t have gone unnoticed by other clubs. It might be a battle, but Cardiff should just be able to hang onto Harris; it’d be an important statement if they do.
The Cardiff fans wait with bated breath to see what the squad looks like when the pre-season matches get underway on July 14.