A balanced reflection of this window:

[Igovernor]

Firstly, I know there’s still time to make signings. But let’s be realistic: unless the club have kept the best secret since Area 51, anything that happens now is starting to feel like desperation rather than part of a proper plan.

I’ve never had an agenda against Tan or been desperate for anyone to go. I also totally disagreed with the re-brand and I admire the fans that protested and dedicated their efforts to return us to blue. I was close to being won over again. I was willing to draw a line under the past and believe that maybe, finally, those running the club had learned some very painful lessons.

And there were genuine reasons for optimism.

Whether by luck or judgement, appointing BBM was a masterstroke. A young, talented manager with experience of developing some of the best youngsters in the country, arriving just as we have a potentially special generation coming through our own academy.

Last season only strengthened that feeling. We played enjoyable football and watched local lads wearing the shirt and representing their city. As a supporter, what more could you want?

Then came the summer.

NG, Bagan and Trott re-signed. Wintle was allowed to leave despite winning Player of the Year, which surely suggested we had a serious replacement lined up.

BBM travelled to see Tan with his family and apparently built a good relationship with him. Then, most importantly, BBM signed a new contract despite interest from elsewhere.

Surely he was given assurances? Surely there was a plan?

Then Cardiff did what Cardiff seem to do better than anyone: snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

There were no play-offs distracting us. No enormous squad needing to be cleared out first. The foundations were already there.

Five or six quality additions to this young squad and we could have had something genuinely exciting — perhaps even capable of pushing towards the top eight.

Instead, somehow, we’ve allowed all that momentum to disappear.

Moylan has been the one major positive, but even his arrival came with this growing feeling that something behind the scenes simply wasn’t right.

I don’t know what has happened. None of us do.

Broken promises? Financial restrictions? Different agendas? Pure incompetence?

Whatever it is, the people running this football club have once again failed to make the important decisions at the right time.

And now we’re gambling.

The performances have been encouraging, but we’re still waiting for that first win. A couple of injuries to key players, or a few players dropping off because they’re being asked to play too much football, and those promising draws can very quickly become narrow defeats.

Momentum works both ways.

And where does that leave BBM?

If things go badly, nobody can blame him because he hasn’t been properly backed. If he somehow gets this squad flying, his stock rises even further.

Either way, if he signed that new contract after being given assurances that haven’t been delivered, why would he want to stay?

That’s probably what frustrates me most.

We had something.

A talented young manager. An exciting group of academy players. Supporters reconnecting with the team. A feel-good factor around the club again.

We didn’t need another rebuild. We just needed to build on it.

And somehow, once again, those running Cardiff City appear to have turned a massive opportunity into another mess.

I’m completely deflated by it. We all know this is the window that counts and January is an emergency situation or to polish your squad.

I’ve been prepared to give this hierarchy another chance, but how many chances do they need?

For me, enough is enough. It’s time for this board to go.

They have repeatedly shown that they are not fit to run this football club.

There is still time left in the window, and I genuinely hope I wake up tomorrow with an enormous amount of egg on my face.

Nothing would make me happier than being completely wrong.

But right now, I just can’t see it.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Last edited by Igovernor on Tue Sep 01, 2026 7:10 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Make sticky

Excellent post mate.

Hope the mods make this a sticky.

Agree with everything you say.

Brilliant post....

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

Firstly, I know there’s still time to make signings. But let’s be realistic: unless the club have kept the best secret since Area 51, anything that happens now is starting to feel like desperation rather than part of a proper plan.

I’ve never had an agenda against Tan or been desperate for anyone to go. I also totally disagreed with the re-brand and I admire the fans that protested and dedicated their efforts to return us to blue. I was close to being won over again. I was willing to draw a line under the past and believe that maybe, finally, those running the club had learned some very painful lessons.

And there were genuine reasons for optimism.

Whether by luck or judgement, appointing BBM was a masterstroke. A young, talented manager with experience of developing some of the best youngsters in the country, arriving just as we have a potentially special generation coming through our own academy.

Last season only strengthened that feeling. We played enjoyable football and watched local lads wearing the shirt and representing their city. As a supporter, what more could you want?

Then came the summer.

NG, Bagan and Trott re-signed. Wintle was allowed to leave despite winning Player of the Year, which surely suggested we had a serious replacement lined up.

BBM travelled to see Tan with his family and apparently built a good relationship with him. Then, most importantly, BBM signed a new contract despite interest from elsewhere.

Surely he was given assurances? Surely there was a plan?

Then Cardiff did what Cardiff seem to do better than anyone: snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

There were no play-offs distracting us. No enormous squad needing to be cleared out first. The foundations were already there.

Five or six quality additions to this young squad and we could have had something genuinely exciting — perhaps even capable of pushing towards the top eight.

Instead, somehow, we’ve allowed all that momentum to disappear.

Moylan has been the one major positive, but even his arrival came with this growing feeling that something behind the scenes simply wasn’t right.

I don’t know what has happened. None of us do.

Broken promises? Financial restrictions? Different agendas? Pure incompetence?

Whatever it is, the people running this football club have once again failed to make the important decisions at the right time.

And now we’re gambling.

The performances have been encouraging, but we’re still waiting for that first win. A couple of injuries to key players, or a few players dropping off because they’re being asked to play too much football, and those promising draws can very quickly become narrow defeats.

Momentum works both ways.

And where does that leave BBM?

If things go badly, nobody can blame him because he hasn’t been properly backed. If he somehow gets this squad flying, his stock rises even further.

Either way, if he signed that new contract after being given assurances that haven’t been delivered, why would he want to stay?

That’s probably what frustrates me most.

We had something.

A talented young manager. An exciting group of academy players. Supporters reconnecting with the team. A feel-good factor around the club again.

We didn’t need another rebuild. We just needed to build on it.

And somehow, once again, those running Cardiff City appear to have turned a massive opportunity into another mess.

I’m completely deflated by it. We all know this is the window that counts and January is an emergency situation or to polish your squad.

I’ve been prepared to give this hierarchy another chance, but how many chances do they need?

For me, enough is enough. It’s time for this board to go.

They have repeatedly shown that they are not fit to run this football club.

There is still time left in the window, and I genuinely hope I wake up tomorrow with an enormous amount of egg on my face.

Nothing would make me happier than being completely wrong.

But right now, I just can’t see it.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Best post of the day hats off to you.

Every transfer window year in year out this board/owner stay silent and end up disappointing a lot of the fan base.
We've had the "2 or 3 very close" and "we may have to wait for our targets to become available towards the end of the window" and here we are needing a couple of reinforcements at the end of the window and it seems almost certain nobody will be coming in. Like many fans have pointed out a few injuries could derail our whole season.
I always hope for a few inspiring signings come near the end of the window but almost like clockwork either nobody comes in or if they do they're bargain basement and not really squad strengtheners.

Nicoblue you are saying what we ALL THINK WHAT A OPPORTUNITY WASTED TAN ,CHOO AND DALMAN GET OUT OF OUR CLUB!!!!!!!! TAN OUT!!!!!!

Excellent post this and I think covers not just mine but many city fans feelings right now.

3 more quality signings and top 8 was possible

Great post but Never fear we will have "free agents" talk within a day or so in threads and the pretend in the knows will say the deals fell through so have some patience as there's plenty of time left yet for some free agent's

Great post, it speaks volumes as to the whole communication promised between owners and the fans which is a complete joke and it was never intended to be kept at all. The half arsed nature & amateur running of the club puts us in huge danger.

Fantastic opening post, and perfectly captures my own thoughts.

I also feel absolutely deflated and believe we've missed a fantastic opportunity to give BBM the resources he needs to have a real go this season.

I hope it doesn't come back to bite us on the arse.

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

That's why we should really be trying to get our business done sooner rather than wait until the last day of the transfer window.

If we get rejected for whatever reason we've no chance of moving on to other targets.

Still can't understand what makes us so unattractive to these players that we're after?

Great post, i am disappointed, only thought we needed 2 more to build on.

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

That's why we should really be trying to get our business done sooner rather than wait until the last day of the transfer window.

If we get rejected for whatever reason we've no chance of moving on to other targets.

Still can't understand what makes us so unattractive to these players that we're after?

Fair point about the timings but the amount of players moving today suggests they were only available today.

As for why players have turned us down, who knows why? Some saying Choo, some saying BBM. I would suspect it's Choo.

Great post but Never fear we will have "free agents" talk within a day or so in threads and the pretend in the knows will say the deals fell through so have some patience as there's plenty of time left yet for some free agent's

Well got all season to get free agents could be useful couple days before seasons over though!

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

That's why we should really be trying to get our business done sooner rather than wait until the last day of the transfer window.

If we get rejected for whatever reason we've no chance of moving on to other targets.

Still can't understand what makes us so unattractive to these players that we're after?

I do wonder if wages aren't enough, I wouldn't say location is an issue because down the road, swansea are bringing players like no tomorrow.

Its all down to the purse strings having a big f.ck off knot in them.

BBM was likely the cheapest option to work in the cheapest way with the kids.

Luckily for us, it worked last season.
A financial gamble that paid off, amongst a plethora of others that didn’t.

They are not and never will be football men.
They are businessmen.

Any mistakes made is just business to them.
But everything to us…….

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

That's why we should really be trying to get our business done sooner rather than wait until the last day of the transfer window.

If we get rejected for whatever reason we've no chance of moving on to other targets.

Still can't understand what makes us so unattractive to these players that we're after?

Fair point about the timings but the amount of players moving today suggests they were only available today.

As for why players have turned us down, who knows why? Some saying Choo, some saying BBM. I would suspect it's Choo.

I would tend to agree that it's more likely to be Choo but why have the club allowed him to be in the position to influence transfers anyway?

Ultimately Choo is the club's representative in negotiations (if that is indeed the case) and therefore the club (ie Tan) bear the ultimate responsibility.

Firstly, I know there’s still time to make signings. But let’s be realistic: unless the club have kept the best secret since Area 51, anything that happens now is starting to feel like desperation rather than part of a proper plan.

I’ve never had an agenda against Tan or been desperate for anyone to go. I also totally disagreed with the re-brand and I admire the fans that protested and dedicated their efforts to return us to blue. I was close to being won over again. I was willing to draw a line under the past and believe that maybe, finally, those running the club had learned some very painful lessons.

And there were genuine reasons for optimism.

Whether by luck or judgement, appointing BBM was a masterstroke. A young, talented manager with experience of developing some of the best youngsters in the country, arriving just as we have a potentially special generation coming through our own academy.

Last season only strengthened that feeling. We played enjoyable football and watched local lads wearing the shirt and representing their city. As a supporter, what more could you want?

Then came the summer.

NG, Bagan and Trott re-signed. Wintle was allowed to leave despite winning Player of the Year, which surely suggested we had a serious replacement lined up.

BBM travelled to see Tan with his family and apparently built a good relationship with him. Then, most importantly, BBM signed a new contract despite interest from elsewhere.

Surely he was given assurances? Surely there was a plan?

Then Cardiff did what Cardiff seem to do better than anyone: snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

There were no play-offs distracting us. No enormous squad needing to be cleared out first. The foundations were already there.

Five or six quality additions to this young squad and we could have had something genuinely exciting — perhaps even capable of pushing towards the top eight.

Instead, somehow, we’ve allowed all that momentum to disappear.

Moylan has been the one major positive, but even his arrival came with this growing feeling that something behind the scenes simply wasn’t right.

I don’t know what has happened. None of us do.

Broken promises? Financial restrictions? Different agendas? Pure incompetence?

Whatever it is, the people running this football club have once again failed to make the important decisions at the right time.

And now we’re gambling.

The performances have been encouraging, but we’re still waiting for that first win. A couple of injuries to key players, or a few players dropping off because they’re being asked to play too much football, and those promising draws can very quickly become narrow defeats.

Momentum works both ways.

And where does that leave BBM?

If things go badly, nobody can blame him because he hasn’t been properly backed. If he somehow gets this squad flying, his stock rises even further.

Either way, if he signed that new contract after being given assurances that haven’t been delivered, why would he want to stay?

That’s probably what frustrates me most.

We had something.

A talented young manager. An exciting group of academy players. Supporters reconnecting with the team. A feel-good factor around the club again.

We didn’t need another rebuild. We just needed to build on it.

And somehow, once again, those running Cardiff City appear to have turned a massive opportunity into another mess.

I’m completely deflated by it. We all know this is the window that counts and January is an emergency situation or to polish your squad.

I’ve been prepared to give this hierarchy another chance, but how many chances do they need?

For me, enough is enough. It’s time for this board to go.

They have repeatedly shown that they are not fit to run this football club.

There is still time left in the window, and I genuinely hope I wake up tomorrow with an enormous amount of egg on my face.

Nothing would make me happier than being completely wrong.

But right now, I just can’t see it.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Have to say I fully agree with this. I have actually been far more neutral on tan than most. Not a fan of his necessarily but more in the middle than most people. This transfer window is disgraceful however for all the reasons you outlined. We have one of the best young managers in British football, a group of exciting young players and all we needed were a couple more to have a chance at continuing the momentum. It now feels lost and I’m sure the players and bbm will feel the same way. Salech has no competition or backup, and bbm mentioned he wanted two or three more players and has got 0 despite the job he’s done. I’m so disappointed. Once again tan and his cronies have shot us in the foot when all actually looked positive for once. Chris wilder even spoke about our atmosphere and how it felt positive for the first time in years. Feels like a massive step back

Good post, some very valid points

The thing for me which the OP summed up brilliantly is that time and time again we snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

As a fan base I think we have been realistic, I’ve certainly not expected signings costing £5m plus, but a couple of canny signings in key positions, be it loan or permanent would have put us in a much healthier position. Are we really meant to believe there was no one who was prepared to come who would make our squad stronger?

Now we are left hoping and praying that we don’t get any injuries or suspensions.. because if Salech, Rubin or Robertson get injured it will have a very significant impact on the team as we have no cover.

BBM was likely the cheapest option to work in the cheapest way with the kids.

Luckily for us, it worked last season.
A financial gamble that paid off, amongst a plethora of others that didn’t.

They are not and never will be football men.
They are businessmen.

Any mistakes made is just business to them.
But everything to us…….

Did BBM get the job on the strength of agreeing to utilise the youngsters and promise not to demand big transfer fees?

Tans eyes would have lit up at this option.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Think the new contract was designed to get Tan a big compo payment if others came knocking for BBM - an insurance policy really.

Knowing BBM's previous rep for walking (Man City and Rochdale) Tan also wins if BBM walks by not honouring the contract.

We all say Tan is hopeless, but he's as cunning as f**k.

Made this a sticky because this is a good post. Not because I agree with it, because there are bits that I don't - specifically that we don't know whether it was down to lack of backing or not, I'm no big supporter of the board by the way. But we know a couple of players turned us down today for whatever reason.

But you've made some solid points that I'm sure many others will agree with and good detail to the post too.

That's why we should really be trying to get our business done sooner rather than wait until the last day of the transfer window.

If we get rejected for whatever reason we've no chance of moving on to other targets.

Still can't understand what makes us so unattractive to these players that we're after?

I do wonder if wages aren't enough, I wouldn't say location is an issue because down the road, swansea are bringing players like no tomorrow.

To be fair Swansea have had to bring in players from abroad who probably haven’t been made aware that it’s a shithole

I share your disprovel seems the club did have targets and bbm stated hed only bring in players to better the club .
Seems we missed out on a few but then the issue is you must have someone in back up as you cant get everything go perfectly in a window .
Maybe bbm is a bit nieve i dont no .
Its no supprise to me tan hasn't really funded a good window .
Years of wasted money from tan and hus business's under performing means the big money deals are long gone now .

I read we arw bottom 4 for squad values 30 m a mid championship squad valve is over 100 m and top championship is 200 m so when you think of it like that the post is even more apparent what he said about a missed opportunity.

Sriker wingers and a replacement for wintle has happened and i believe wintle is better than robertson in that position.
Player of the year gone and nobody in to replace him thats better than him its a huge huge mistake by the club and that one position is now i believe gonna be our down fall why would they do that .

So the board have gambled yet again with our club and its sickening because a few additions would of made a huge difference.

So buckle up for a season of battle still searching for our first win it looks quite positive at mo but we all no the championship is grueling its gonna get harder and harder and i no the fans the players are up for it together but the board dont make things easy for the club do they bbm has a huge job on his hands now totally different from last season and i wish him and the team good luck but will the lack of ambition be our downfall again time will tell

I’ve been searching for positives, and one of the few I can really take from it is Rob Tankiewicz, who looks like a top prospect for the future.

I would have liked to see him go out on loan and get regular minutes, but he’s so good at finding space. I know it was only Cork, but I was genuinely blown away by his understanding of the game.

He looked so much more intelligent in his movement and positioning than some of the experienced players who had played the first half.

Maybe the lack of recruitment will actually work in his favour. If it means he gets more first-team opportunities, who knows? We might end up seeing the next big talent come through the academy.

Firstly, I know there’s still time to make signings. But let’s be realistic: unless the club have kept the best secret since Area 51, anything that happens now is starting to feel like desperation rather than part of a proper plan.

I’ve never had an agenda against Tan or been desperate for anyone to go. I also totally disagreed with the re-brand and I admire the fans that protested and dedicated their efforts to return us to blue. I was close to being won over again. I was willing to draw a line under the past and believe that maybe, finally, those running the club had learned some very painful lessons.

And there were genuine reasons for optimism.

Whether by luck or judgement, appointing BBM was a masterstroke. A young, talented manager with experience of developing some of the best youngsters in the country, arriving just as we have a potentially special generation coming through our own academy.

Last season only strengthened that feeling. We played enjoyable football and watched local lads wearing the shirt and representing their city. As a supporter, what more could you want?

Then came the summer.

NG, Bagan and Trott re-signed. Wintle was allowed to leave despite winning Player of the Year, which surely suggested we had a serious replacement lined up.

BBM travelled to see Tan with his family and apparently built a good relationship with him. Then, most importantly, BBM signed a new contract despite interest from elsewhere.

Surely he was given assurances? Surely there was a plan?

Then Cardiff did what Cardiff seem to do better than anyone: snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

There were no play-offs distracting us. No enormous squad needing to be cleared out first. The foundations were already there.

Five or six quality additions to this young squad and we could have had something genuinely exciting — perhaps even capable of pushing towards the top eight.

Instead, somehow, we’ve allowed all that momentum to disappear.

Moylan has been the one major positive, but even his arrival came with this growing feeling that something behind the scenes simply wasn’t right.

I don’t know what has happened. None of us do.

Broken promises? Financial restrictions? Different agendas? Pure incompetence?

Whatever it is, the people running this football club have once again failed to make the important decisions at the right time.

And now we’re gambling.

The performances have been encouraging, but we’re still waiting for that first win. A couple of injuries to key players, or a few players dropping off because they’re being asked to play too much football, and those promising draws can very quickly become narrow defeats.

Momentum works both ways.

And where does that leave BBM?

If things go badly, nobody can blame him because he hasn’t been properly backed. If he somehow gets this squad flying, his stock rises even further.

Either way, if he signed that new contract after being given assurances that haven’t been delivered, why would he want to stay?

That’s probably what frustrates me most.

We had something.

A talented young manager. An exciting group of academy players. Supporters reconnecting with the team. A feel-good factor around the club again.

We didn’t need another rebuild. We just needed to build on it.

And somehow, once again, those running Cardiff City appear to have turned a massive opportunity into another mess.

I’m completely deflated by it. We all know this is the window that counts and January is an emergency situation or to polish your squad.

I’ve been prepared to give this hierarchy another chance, but how many chances do they need?

For me, enough is enough. It’s time for this board to go.

They have repeatedly shown that they are not fit to run this football club.

There is still time left in the window, and I genuinely hope I wake up tomorrow with an enormous amount of egg on my face.

Nothing would make me happier than being completely wrong.

But right now, I just can’t see it.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Think the new contract was designed to get Tan a big compo payment if others came knocking for BBM - an insurance policy really.

Knowing BBM's previous rep for walking (Man City and Rochdale) Tan also wins if BBM walks by not honouring the contract.

We all say Tan is hopeless, but he's as cunning as f**k.

The truth on that one is far away from your interpretation; but you’ve ‘hinted’ at a lot lately without truly backing anything up on things (BBM’s time at other clubs a big example)

And one day, I’d love to know exactly what happened between BBM signing that new contract and us ending up here.

Think the new contract was designed to get Tan a big compo payment if others came knocking for BBM - an insurance policy really.

Knowing BBM's previous rep for walking (Man City and Rochdale) Tan also wins if BBM walks by not honouring the contract.

We all say Tan is hopeless, but he's as cunning as f**k.

The truth on that one is far away from your interpretation; but you’ve ‘hinted’ at a lot lately without truly backing anything up on things (BBM’s time at other clubs a big example)

My stuff on BBM at Leicester is impeccably sourced - his working methods, his inflexibility, his own team creating a divisive atmosphere, the problems it creates in the club and the reluctance of players and staff to follow him. You don't have to believe it, but the no-show in this transfer window points to the fact it is all spot on.

The comments above in the 3 yr contract are my take - you may have better info - but I read it as two ego maniacs trying to out fox each other. Noses being cut off to spite faces all over the place.