Tomlin’s a real talent, but he needs to show he’s the main man – Blake

BLUEBIRDS legend Nathan Blake has urged playmaker Lee Tomlin to show why he deserves to be made the main man at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Having become the club’s marquee summer signing, much was expected of the former Bristol City and Middlesbrough star, especially after Cardiff boss Neil Warnock admitted the 28-year-old was a player he feared would be out of his reach.

But, following a stop-start beginning to life with the Bluebirds, coupled with impressive starts for lessheralded signings like Nathaniel Mendez-Laing, Tomlin has found himself drifting out of the reckoning for a starting spot.

Blake is adamant Tomlin has the ability and track record to make the kind of impact at Cardiff that fans are hoping for.

But he insists the Leicester-born player must go out of his way to grab his big Cardiff chance and not wait for opportunities to come to him.

“At the end of the day, every player knows they do not have a divine right to play,” said Wales Online football columnist Blake.

“Sometimes when you’re brought in as the star player, you’re expecting things to happen and perhaps you’re not really in the mind frame to think “I’ve got to go out and make things happen”.

“You expect to play because you’re bought as the star man – like Lee Tomlin – you expect to score goals, but if it doesn’t happen or someone else comes in and steals your thunder – which is basically what’s happened – because let’s be fair, for the first six or seven games Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was the superstar of the team, he took everyone’s breath away.

“You can’t let that take anything away from your own personal performance.

“Being left out wouldn’t make his head drop, but the focus is not on you, you’re not the main man, you’re not the person brought in to be the star man of this team. Someone else has got that mantle.

“So, you have a decision, and you either say: “I’m going to go up and show why they brought me in as the main man” or “I’m going to let others shine and I’m just going to hope that I get another opportunity down the line”.

“The only way you’re going to get an opportunity is being the best in training, and when you do get an opportunity, you’ve got to be playing so well that the manager has to think he can’t do without you.

“I don’t see Tomlin as a luxury player, I see him as a lock-picker type player.

“The type of player he is and the skill level he’s got, he should be thinking to himself, an average season is around 12 goals, a decent season is 16 or 17 goals, and a normal season is 20 goals.

“With the amount of skill he’s got, if in 30 games he couldn’t get