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Omer Riza has finally been given some certainty over his future after Cardiff City confirmed he would be manager until at least the end of the season.
After a stunning start, including an unbeaten run of six games in his first seven matches in charge, the now permanent Bluebirds boss has hit a sticky patch with no wins in his last five and one in his last seven outings.
But that’s the Championship for you, however with City still so perilously close to the bottom three, Riza will know his side need an upturn in results as we head into the festive period and into the new year.
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He will no doubt want to stake his claim for the job beyond next summer, of course. And with last Thursday’s announcement comes more clarity and more control for Riza, who has some important calls to make in the weeks ahead.
Here, we take a look at the key decisions Riza must now make as he tries to get Cardiff back on solid ground and looking up the table, rather than over their shoulders at those below.
Transfer calls
After a generally underwhelming transfer window in the summer, Cardiff can ill-afford to get this one wrong next month.
There will need to be some carefully-fitted jigsaw pieces, because City have used their allotted 25-man squad, so there will need to be outgoings before there are incomings. The likes of Ryotaro Tsunoda and Cian Ashford are already being considered for loans away.
Wilfried Kanga will almost certainly get recalled by Hertha BSC. The Ivorian has endured a rotten loan spell with Cardiff and is yet to score a single goal. It’s just not worked and everyone will feel it would be best if ties were cut. Others like Jamilu Collins, who was brought back in from the cold against Coventry City and did well, and Yakou Meite, have had question marks over their heads, but have also proved they can offer something at this level.
There are certain key positions which need targeting. A striker is certainly one. Cardiff have rarely had success when they have gone cheap with strikers. Free agents and loans – Sory Kaba aside, perhaps – have just not worked. There is a reason these players are surplus to requirements at their current clubs. Paying fees for Kieffer Moore and Callum Robinson have proved relative successes, although Vincent Tan has been burnt by previous big transfers, to which he often alludes.
But you so often get what you pay for at this level and given the perilous position Cardiff find themselves in, a gem of a loan or paying to get a good striker out of their contract seems to the logical way to go if they are to stand a chance of securing a top front man.
Right-back is often a position which is overlooked, given two-time player of the year Perry Ng plays there. But competition is always a good thing and they are light in that position since Mahlon Romeo’s contract was ripped up. Calum Chambers can play there at a push, while Andy Rinomhota has been used as a makeshift on occasion, too. Ronan Kpakio is an emerging talent but how ready he is remains to be seen.
Another winger would be handy. Ollie Tanner has had a lot of minutes this season, while on the other wing Chris Willock and Anwar El Ghazi are yet to really hit their best form.
Decisions over players who have been loaned out, including Ryan Wintle and Joel Colwill, also have to be made. Will Riza, who wants to play a new style of football, want either back? Perhaps bring Wintle back and leave Colwill be, considering how well he is doing at Cheltenham Town, will be the way to go? Roko Simic desperately needs game-time. If he isn’t going to play at Kortrijk Cardiff need to be ruthless and find him somewhere else, given their long-term plan for him to be the first-choice No.9.
Plenty to consider.
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Contracts
This is becoming an ever-increasing concern by the day. As things stand, City’s squad is going to look threadbare and incredibly weak come July 1, 2025.
There are 13 players out of contract, if we include current loanee Kanga in this list, at the end of the season and there is no sign of anyone signing a new deal. This time last year, a flurry of signatures had already been placed atop the dotted lines.
The full list is as follows:
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Wilfried Kanga (loan)
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Dimitrios Goutas
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Anwar El Ghazi
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Callum Robinson
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Callum O’Dowda
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Yakou Meite
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Isaak Davies
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Joe Ralls
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Kion Etete
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Aaron Ramsey
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Jamilu Collins
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Andy Rinomhota
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Jak Alnwick
There are some massive names in that list. Players who are central to Cardiff both now and in the future, one would think. Goutas has been a fantastic signing and no Cardiff fan would want to see him leave. The same would be said for O’Dowda, too, a really consistent operator at this level.
Callum Robinson now looks like someone the club should be trying their best to keep hold of, while Jak Alnwick has very rarely let Cardiff down and has even been given the captain’s arm band.
Isaak Davies and Kion Etete are still young forwards who have not fulfilled their potential in a City shirt. Decisions have to be made on them. Sign up to our daily Cardiff City newsletter here.
Then there is club captain Joe Ralls and Welsh footballing legend Aaron Ramsey. Both are big presences in the dressing room and have a hell of a lot to offer a club like Cardiff. With Ramsey, of course, that injury record has to be discussed and the numbers have to be crunched in the financial directors’ office to see what the best course of action is. A fit-and-firing Ramsey is still a deadly weapon at Championship level, but Cardiff have to see it over the next few months otherwise it’s futile.
Backroom staff
Omer Riza said he hadn’t given much thought to shaping and nailing down his first-team coaching staff, but that does have to be high on his priority list.
At the moment he and Tom Ramasut remain from the Erol Bulut regime, while Darren Purse has been promoted from the under-21s on an interim basis and Gavin Ward has been parachuted in to help the goalkeepers, again on an interim basis.
Cardiff need more football nous in the building, preferably someone who has played a lot of games at Championship level or above – or equivalent across Europe – to get that knowledge base up.
The Bluebirds are still a coach down from Bulut’s staff in the summer and it is currently made up of interims and caretakers. If Cardiff are to continue improving on their style of play and other avenues and means of scoring goals, Riza needs more help. He has a lot on his shoulders and will have to deal with far more than just playing matters now he is manager.
The recruitment department also needs major bolstering and while that might not fall entirely under Riza’s remit, he will likely have a say in it.
Youngsters
The club always invest heavily in their academy system and young players and as such, the pathway for them is always a big consideration for the manager.
Joel Colwill, as previously mentioned, and Eli King are two promising academy products out on loan and decisions will have to be made over their immediate and long-term futures.
Ashford will likely head for a loan, while depending on how Cardiff fare in the transfer market with regards to a striker, Michael Reindorf might benefit from a loan away.
There are others flourishing at under-21s level, such as Dylan Lawlor and Ronan Kpakio. If Cardiff see them as future first-teamers, they need to be exposed to senior football out on loan in the new year. Luey Giles has impressed when given the opportunity for the first team, too, so he would likely benefit from a loan exit, with Joel Bagan, O’Dowda and Collins ahead of him in the current pecking order.
Vincent Tan will always press on managers his penchant for wanting young players to come through, so make no mistake that Riza will have to formulate a plan for their promising crop in the new year and next summer.