GOOD TO BE BACK

Bluebirds boss Harris says it’s ‘a privilege’ to be back with his squad in training:

FOR Neil Harris, last week was one of the best of his football career. Given the uncertainty with which millions of people in this country have been living over the last few months, he described having his Cardiff City squad back at their Vale HQ as a ‘privilege’.

It is the very first tentative steps back to the Championship season resuming and, as such, the start of a very long road back to some sort of semblance of normality.

“It’s been a pleasure, a real pleasure. I’ve got to be honest,” he says. “It’s been one of the most enjoyable weeks of my football career.”

Harris has kept touch with all of his players and coaching staff over the last 10 weeks of lockdown, via Zoom, WhatsApp and over the phone, but nothing quite compares to having his team back on the grass.

There have been worries and concerns, understandably, among the players and the coaching staff over the last few months.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing spoke extremely candidly about the worries he had over his asthma, his pregnant partner and his BAME background.

And Harris is extremely conscious about that and the fears his players and staff might have had, which is why, on day one, he laid out the ground rules.

“I said ‘That’s the protocol and you know what you all need to do. But, just to reiterate, if anybody is nervous about being here or is not sure and wants to opt out of doing something, then no-one is being judged’,” he says.

Looking at the bigger picture, however, he sees football’s imminent return as a huge opportunity to get smiles back on people’s faces over the coming months.

“So we went through that procedure first. I reminded them about the football side of things and the industry we are in and the opportunity we’ve got to put a smile on people’s faces,” he adds.

“It’s been a difficult time for our fans over the last three months. It could be for the country moving forward as well for a period. But we’ve got a chance to enjoy it and put a smile on people’s faces, so let’s do it.”

He’s right, too, of course, the nine remaining games which Cardiff City have left represent a huge opportunity for them to make a push towards the playoff spots.

The Bluebirds sit two points off the top six at present and, as a restart date nears, his message to his players is simple: Let’s give it a proper go.

“We can be successful,” he adds.

“I reminded them of just how well we had played in the week leading up to the lockdown, some good results we’d had and the fact we could have, pretty much, a fully-fit squad when we get round to maybe facing Leeds United in a couple of weeks.

“With nine games to go, let’s just have a go. Let’s just have a right go.

“They should embrace every minute of being footballer. It’s one of the best weeks I’ve had, certainly as a manager, but in football, from where we’ve been in the last few months, to be back at The Vale, albeit in smaller numbers and in different groups, has been an absolutely privilege and a pleasure.”

There was a slight indifference, it is fair to say, when Harris was appointed following Neil Warnock’s departure back in November, but public perception, by and large, appears to have changed.

He does seem to get it. He understands the expectation weighing on this club and knows it is right for fans to expect, given the recent success Cardiff City have had.

But he is also conscious of wider issues, too, like the importance of the academy and having to work within a strict budget in the transfer market.

In the very short term, however, it is full steam ahead for those topsix spots and the string of difficult games, which include Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Preston, Bristol City and Fulham, which lay ahead.

But while the task ahead is undoubtedly a difficult one, there are two huge factors at play which Harris believes have boosted his side’s chances: Mendez-Laing and Lee Tomlin.

Before the break, both were thought to be out for the rest of the season, but Harris is pleased to report they will both now be huge assets over the coming months.

“Mendez-Laing has come back into the full group instantly,” he says.

“He has had two full days’ training with the group, which is fantastic and he looks in great shape.

“Lee is slightly further away because he has had less contact time with the physios before lockdown.

“Lee is doing pretty much everything the players are doing, but he’s just doing it in his own different environment at the moment.

“But we are hoping to have him back in the group, full training, possibly next week.

“We are certainly hoping that Tomlin and Mendez-Laing will both be available for the next game of the season, when that comes about. Whether it’s that they are ready to start a game or not, but we are hopeful they can have some impact from the bench.

“We are not putting too much pressure on them, but it is a positive, they are two very popular players and it’s great to have them back, they are vital to success for us.

“Given the difficult time we’ve had, it’s nice to share that good news.”

The Bluebirds’ depth of talent now is unquestionable.

What adds to the positivity of having Mendez-Laing and Tomlin back, of course, is the fact that Harris will be permitted to make five substitutions when the season kickstarts once again.

With the likes of Mendez-Laing, Albert Adomah, Gavin Whyte, Josh