Harris unveils vision for future, but pleads patience from fans
THE whole footballing landscape has been knocked out of kilter in the last three months, but one thing remains strong and true: Neil Harris’ Cardiff City vision.
While the Bluebirds, like every other club during the coronavirus pandemic, are battling to balance their finances off the pitch, the ultimate goal of securing Premier League football remains the same.
Perhaps the biggest question mark hanging over Harris and the club as a whole is this summer’s transfer window.
The Bluebirds boss used his time in lockdown to begin planning for next season, identifying areas of the squad he wants to adjust or bolster when the summer window opens, whenever that might be.
But, until the season has ended, there is no real telling of how dire the financial situation might be.
Earlier this season, Cardiff chiefs Mehmet Dalman and Ken Choo outlined to a select group of fans and press at Cardiff City Stadium that the days of huge expenditure in the transfer market, which was a hallmark of Neil Warnock’s tenure, are over and the club must be shrewder in future windows.
Dalman has since said Cardiff can forget about spending big in this summer window owing to the financial impact of coronavirus, but it is likely Harris’ budget will have been fairly tight anyway.
It is why Harris’ passion for rearing homegrown youngsters is such a big advantage in the current climate and is indeed one of the main reasons he was chosen as Warnock’s successor.
“Ultimately, we want to be a team that gets into the Premier League and stay there,” Harris said.
“There’s been a lot of talk, Mehmet, the chairman, spoke really well a few weeks ago... I think we all understand the financial climate in football is going to change, certainly outside the Premier League.
“So, recruiting from within, building players from within, is paramount, which is something I’m really strong on. But we have to be patient with those players.
“We want to be back in the Premier League, I want to coach and manage at the best level possible.
“We have given ourselves a chance now. The aim was to give ourselves a chance, force our way into the playoffs and then go from there.
“If not, it’s to build, lower the age of the squad and build from within and push on to be a Premier League club and a club that can also stay in that division.”
Harris is conscious of Cardiff fans’ desire to see youth flourish in these parts once again.
The Bluebirds’ supporters have not seen a homegrown talent excel since Joe Ledley more than a decade ago and their tolerance is understandably wearing thin.
Harris knows he has to address this, of course, and has sought to do just that with the inclusion of Joel Bagan, Ntazana Mayembe, Tom Sang and Sam Bowen in and around the firstteam squad at various points over the last few months.
Harris says he is “really strong” on showing these players a pathway into the senior side, but also warns it is counter-productive to thrust them into the deep end before they can swim.
“Some of the players might make their debuts, some of the players played [in the friendly against Swansea City] and some we might see in weeks to come and months to come,” Harris added.
“When we look at adjusting the squad in the summer, the likes of Tom Sang and Mark Harris, the older under-23s players, Ciaron Brown in the future, and the younger ones, like Joel Bagan, who did extremely well in the Cup game... we have got players knocking on the door.
“Bringing them through is something that’s going to be really important.
“We invest in the academy, they bring the players through, and I know the fanbase are craving for young players to come through, but I have to protect those young players as well.
“It’s a balance between giving them a chance and the right time. There is no point giving them a chance too soon, when they are not ready, that’s going to cause problems, that’s when they lose confidence and the fans don’t see them at their best.”
What will hearten Cardiff fans, though, is Harris is incredibly excited about the next crop sprouting through the youth system.
The likes of Sang, Harris and Brown are all in their 20s now and should really be seeking first-team minutes, so the next 12 months is crucial for them, you feel.
But it is believed the cohort beneath them is one of the most impressive to come through the system in some years.
While Harris is rightly coy on shoving them into the limelight too much, the likes of Bagan (18), Bowen (19) and Mayembe (17), are thought of incredibly highly within the youth system, as is Kieron Evans, an 18-year-old winger who we could hear a lot more about in the coming months.
And the first-team boss says he is fired up by the prospect and is hellbent on ensuring that group of talent is not lost.
“I feel there are three or four,” Harris said of the group coming through. “I mentioned Mark and Tom there as a couple of 20- 21-year-olds, who are physically a bit closer, but the group below that, a couple of lads who are 18 or 19, have really strong futures.
“They are the ones I want to work with, not just day-in, day-out in training, but on the fringes as well.
“That means probably not to go out on loan, but to stay with us, develop with us and improve them. Physically, mentally and tactically. I’m passionate about it, I’m fired up by it.
“But, are we going to see four or five of them in the starting line-up on Sunday? No. Are we going to see them on September 12? Well, I’d like to think we will see them in the match-day squad.
“In six, nine, 12 months’ time, I’ll be disappointed if we’re not seeing two, three, four boys in a match-day squad of 20. That’s the aim, that’s my vision, my goal.”
Both Sang and Harris took part in the friendly matches against Swansea City at the weekend, while Brown and Bagan’s loan contracts at Livingston and Notts County mean they cannot play any part for the Bluebirds for the time being, much to Harris’ annoyance.
Other youngsters were given a run out against Cheltenham Town last Tuesday, too, and there is a growing feeling that the academy kids could play some part in the season run-in.
With just nine fixtures remaining
and Cardiff sitting two points outside the play-off spots, Harris has his sights firmly set on breaking into the top six.
Were they to fall short, however, the final games of the campaign might represent big opportunities for the youngsters to gain first-team exposure, which could be crucial heading into the summer transfer window.
While Harris has identified areas he would like to strengthen, he concedes his plans cannot be concrete until he knows what division his side is playing in next season and just how much cash is available.
Football’s finances are set to hit the reset button in a big way when the dust eventually settles and it will send shockwaves through the English football pyramid.
What it will mean, Harris says, is whereas players and agents have seemingly ruled roost in recent years, the clubs will be able to take the power back once again and be able to administer far more control.
“I don’t think Mehmet, Ken or myself are trying to paint doom and gloom or panic stations if we don’t achieve promotion this year,” Harris added.
“The Championship, we don’t know about salary caps or budgets yet, that’s information yet to come through.
“We understand the general consensus is that there will be a knock-on effect and a lot of power will go back to clubs again that may have been with the players for the last four, five, six years.
“There will be a lot of players out of contract this summer who don’t find employment in the Football League.
“Championship players will have to go down to League One or League Two. It’s going to be difficult for the PFA to support their players.
“So, we are just trying to cut our cloth accordingly in the coming months.”
Whichever division they find themselves in or however hard the finances are hit, producing homegrown talent appears to be at the forefront of everything the club are trying to do going forward.