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| Mick McCarthy, former Cardiff City Manager Photo: Wales Online |
So, Mick McCarthy's reign as Cardiff City manager is over (thank God). After an initial honeymoon period at the end of last term when he hauled us into the play-off's it's all gone horribly wrong this season. With the fans back at CCS full of optimism (maybe a slight overstatement), we then got rid of our all our wide players so cutting off the supply line for last season's 20 goal hero Kieffer Moore to the point where he's netted just once this season. We've been unable to score (1 goal in the last 8 games I think it is), and all of those last 8 have been defeats, including the 3-0 humiliation against arch rivals Swansea. Playing 4 or 5 centre backs every game and continuing the "lump it forward" dinosaur tactics, with no attempt to do anything but defend (and we've been pretty shit at that) has further frustrated and angered the fanbase.
McCarthy failed to genuinely engage with the fans at any point, and his downfall has been inevitable given the current run of form. The loss to former manager Neil Warnock's Middlesborough last weekend, along with a man of the match performance from former Bluebird hero Sol Bamba might have been the final straw, although there are plenty of suggestions around that the decision to dispense with McCarthy's services was a done deal long before that match.
Anyway, it's onwards (saying "and upwards" would be overly optimistic at this point) as City begin a search for a new manager, with former Blades boss Chris Wilder seemingly favourite (but why he, or indeed anyone else would want to come to City at the moment is a question that needs answering - see later in this post). Other names in the frame include a few of the regular faces as these things come around - Chris Hughton (no thanks), and Tony Pulis (definitely no thanks) as well as fan favourite Craig Bellamy (extremely unlikely), Frank Lampard (no chance) and even former boss Neil Harris (that's a no from me).
For the moment, U23 manager Steve Morison takes charge (at least for the next 3 games). He's widely applauded for having an U23 side that play attractive football, although that seems to get beaten out of players when they get to the 1st team. Whether with the players he's got available, 3 games is enough for him to radically change the style of play and fortunes of the club on the field remains to be seen. Once thing's for sure, he's got a tough job on his hands.
As if all this wasn't bad enough, following the 'Boro game it came to light that just before the match (literally 90 minutes before!) City Chairman Mehmet Dalman met with a few selected fan representatives to set out the challenges facing the club at the moment. And it doesn't make for pretty reading.
On the pitch, managerless City sit just one place above the relegation spots, with a threadbare squad, players who seemingly don't want to be here, and a playing style that's archaic at best. Dalman indicated in the fans meeting that there would be no money for transfers not only in the coming January window, but also next summer. Hence my observation about whether Wilder, or indeed any other potential manager would want to come to a club with apparently no prospect of being able to shape and strengthen the playing squad. Moreover, Dalman also inferred that the whole footballing approach and playing style are being directed by owner Vincent Tan, the multi-millionaire Malaysian businessman currently bankrolling City, who once urged a former manager to get the goalkeeper's to shoot more!
There were also inferences that a number of the current squad will not have their contracts renewed at the end of season, and with up to 10 players out of contract in the summer, that's going to be a massive problem for whoever's the manager at the time especially if there are going to be no funds available.
Additionally, the club continues to face a number of significant legal actions with potentially serious financial implications - the Emiliano Sala, Sam Hamman and Michael Isaacs cases all in progress, with Dalman suggesting that potential monetary losses in those cases (although that's not certain by any means) could amount to £50 million.
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| Mehmet Dalman, Cardiff City Chairman Photo: Wales Online |
He also made a number of remarks about the stewardship of the owner that many have interpreted as a bit of the old "slopey shoulders" syndrome by the Chaiman, apparently distancing himself from his boss.
There was also talk of potentially re-financing the club, although quite what that means or entails was not forthcoming.
All in all then, Cardiff City are in a pretty grim place.
Relegation to League 1, and even administration is a real possibility unless City start winning, but quite how any manager coming in can change things around quickly enough given the current squad and lack of funds is a mystery. Add to that an owner who knows little about football, but seems to be driving the way we play from Malaysia, and a bunch of legal cases that could financially cripple the club.
We've also got a group of players who will be out of contract come the summer, with no doubt some of them already looking at the shambles who will be looking to their agents to get them a move to a more normal football club.
As a side note, the players have to take some responsibility for the on-field results too - McCarthy was the buck stop as manager, but he can't kick the ball. That's down to the players, and almost without exception, they've underperformed this season.
And a secondary side note, on Saturday I felt a great deal of sympathy for the two young players who came on (Isaak Davies and Eli King) who should have been revelling in their 1st XI debuts but were caught up in the toxic atmosphere of anti-McCarthy/general performance boos and jeers during and at the end of the game. Not a way they're going to want to remember their debuts.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Championship must be looking at their fixture list, and marking us down as a banker 3 points.
Grim stuff. Who'd be a football supporter?
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