Battle for places is key to City success
COMPETITION IN SQUAD WILL BE VITAL TO PROMOTION BID, SAYS RALLS AHEAD OF BIRMINGHAM GAME BLUES V BLUEBIRDS:
JOE Ralls believes Cardiff City’s team spirit is the reason why the club’s summer signings have settled in so quickly with the Bluebirds.
The 24-year-old’s fellow central midfielders Craig Bryson and Loic Damour have both impressed in the Welsh capital since joining the club during the transfer window.
And Ralls admits the intensified battle to be selected by Neil Warnock can only benefit the Bluebirds’ promotion bid.
“There is (good competition for places),” said Ralls.
“I think it’s good. We all want to achieve something this year.
“We know the Championship is a hard league, there’s going to be plenty of games and a lot of niggles and things like that so I’m happy with the squad and all of us know in the team that you’ve got to be in form if you want to play games.
“Callum Paterson and (Lee) Camp when they are fully fit as well, at the moment we feel like we’ve got a good squad and there’s still other players to add to that.
“We’ve got the Christmas period not too far away so the bigger the squad the better, really.
“All of the new boys have settled in well.
“We’ve got a great team spirit and a great dressing room. I’m sure they’ll say themselves, it’s an easy team to come into and fit in straight away. I think they’ve done that. Bryson’s started well and Loic. (Danny) Wardy when he’s played, he scored a big goal at Fulham so I think they’ve settled in very well.”
After having to bide his time during the earlier parts of his Cardiff career, Ralls has become a far more prominent figure for the Bluebirds in recent seasons.
His performances have even seen him compared to former Bluebird and current Wales star Joe Ledley, a player Ralls lined up against prior to the recent international break when Cardiff drew 0-0 with Derby.
And Ralls admits he can see why some sections of the Cardiff faithful have compared his style to that of Ledley’s, adding that he is enjoying being a influential cog in the Bluebirds’ midfield under Warnock.
“We’re both midfielders, both leftfooted, we obviously played against each other so maybe there are some similarities there,” he added.
“Breaking through, you have to be patient and just keep working and try to impress the manager that’s in charge at the time.
“I’ve been happy with the last two or three years and I’ve been playing plenty of football.
“It’s been enjoyable and this season, being in a side that’s doing as well as we are is even better and hopefully we can keep that going.
“There’s been a good feeling around the club and we’ve taken that into the football. The wins obviously help.
“We’re happy to be in this position and I think with the squad we’ve got hopefully we can do something this season.
“That’s the aim this season but there’s a long way to go so we’ll see what happens.
“I don’t really look at the table too much, we just go into games trying to get the wins so hopefully, we’ve got these small periods now to pick up as many points as we can.
“It’s always nice if you play on a Friday and get a win. If you can do that then obviously it’s a lovely feeling watching the other games coming in. That’ll be the aim for us, it’s going to be a tough game but we feel we can do that.
“The Championship is a tough league and Birmingham have some good players. They recruited a lot in the summer and I imagine they’re desperate for points as well.”