" TOUGH TIMES FOR MALKY, AS MALKY HAS TO DECIDE "

' Tough call for Malky Mackay as he names Cardiff City 25-man Premier League squad '
4th Sep 2013.


Malky Mackay will today select his 25-man squad to represent Cardiff City in their first ever Premier League campaign. Terry Phillips takes a look at how it might go


Malky Mackay has some tough decisions to make


Here is Malky's 8 New Signings

Corneilius (7.5 Mill)
Brayford (1.5 Mill)
Moore (150k)
Caulker (8 Mill)
Medel (9.5 Mill)
Amondarain (Undisc)
Theophile Catherine (Undisc)
Odemwingie (2.5 Mill)


Malky Mackay must name Cardiff City’s 25-man Premier League squad by 5pm this afternoon – and he faces some big decisions.

Manager Mackay will have to leave a couple of his trusted group out of his selection, probably Simon Lappin plus Joe Mason or Craig Conway, meaning they will not be able to play in the top flight until the January transfer window opens.

Young striker Mason has been linked with a loan move to Burnley – where Mackay’s close friendly Sean Dyche is manager – to gain experience and that would make sense.

Mason did not even make the starting line-up for Cardiff when Mackay made 11 changes for the Capital One Cup win at Accrington Stanley.

And the arrival of new signing Peter Odemwingie may mean Scottish international Conway is omitted from the City squad.

Cardiff City striker Peter Odemwingie

Left-back Lappin, signed as cover last season, looks likely to miss out now that teenager Declan John, who was added to the Wales squad this week, has emerged.

Slovakian midfield player Filip Kiss, Slovenian striker Etien Velikonja and winger Kadeem Harris are also likely to be surplus to requirements.

They will all be able to play in the Capital One Cup tie at West Ham later this month, but would not be eligible for Premier League action.

The most likely scenario is that Kiss, Velikonja, Lappin and possibly Mason, who remains highly rated by Mackay and will be given every chance to progress, will be allowed out on loan.

Danish centre-forward Andreas Cornelius, Merthyr Tydfil-born left-back John, Uruguayan under-20 international centre-half Maxi Amondarain and winger Kadeem Harris are all aged under 21 and don’t have to be included in the 25-man squad.

Mackay can use an unlimited number of players in that age group.

City must include at least eight homegrown players and have far more than that. The players in that category don’t need to be British, but irrespective of nationality and age, must have been registered with an English or Welsh club for three seasons before their 21st birthday.

Once Mackay commits to his Premier League squad – and it is likely to be named this morning – there is no going back until that January transfer window opens.

At that stage there are no restrictions on how many changes a club can make.

Now the summer transfer window has closed Mackay cannot add to his squad even through loans until January, even if the player he was interested in was a free agent.

However, the emergency loan transfer window opens for Football League clubs next week and there will certainly be a number of Cardiff players going out.

That could include Mason to Burnley, while Kiss and Velikonja certainly need to be playing first-team football elsewhere.

They are in Cardiff’s under-21 development squad, but those encounters are hardly adequate in terms of intensity and quality.

Striker Cornelius is making good progress in his recovery from the ankle injury sustained against Accrington away.

He is unlikely to be fit for City’s match at Hull on Saturday week, but should be back in training and close to full fitness by then.

That match at Hull’s KC Stadium should also see Odemwingie make his Bluebirds debut, while his first home match will be against Spurs the following weekend.


Terry's prediction: Cardiff City's 25 man squad

Goalkeepers 3: David Marshall, Joe Lewis, Simon Moore.

Defenders 8: Matthew Connolly, Andrew Taylor, Steven Caulker, Mark Hudson, Ben Turner, John Brayford, Kevin McNaughton, Kevin Theophile-Catherine.

Midfield 9: Peter Whittingham, Gary Medel, Kim Bo-Kyung, Tommy Smith, Craig Noone, Aron Gunnarsson, Jordon Mutch, Don Cowie, Craig Conway.

Forwards 5: Peter Odemwingie, Fraizer Campbell, Rudy Gestede, Nicky Maynard, Craig Bellamy.

Under-21s who don’t have to be named: Andreas Cornelius, Maxi Amondarain, Kadeem Harris and Declan John plus Under-21 Development squad players Luke Coulson, Adedeji Oshilaja, Kane Owen, Bradley Williams, Theo Wharton, Tommy O'Sullivan, Tyler Roche, Rhys Healey, Dave Richards (gk), Bradley Wickham, MacAuley, Jaye Bowen.

Think it's fairly clear that Conway isn't in Malkys plans at the minute. Not a bad squad though on paper is it? As someone quoted on here off Gary Linikers twitter, Malky has done what a newly promoted sign requires to survive the top flight! I think Gary has hit the nail on the head, onwards and upwards!

Where did the rumour stating that John Brayford was going back to Derby on loan come from? It seemed like it came from trusted sources at the time yet seemed a very odd thing to happen!

Where did the rumour stating that John Brayford was going back to Derby on loan come from? It seemed like it came from trusted sources at the time yet seemed a very odd thing to happen!

It never came from Carl, City Gent or Myself.
Who were you thinking it came from ?



links

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=122434&hilit=John+Brayford

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=122434&p=1257735&hilit=John+Brayford#p1257735

Never said it was going to happen just sumthing i heard, as its a cardiff football forum thought i would share with you, if he had gone wouldnt have pretending to be in the know either

Interesting! Did not know that U-21s did not have to be included, so it's really about a 30man squad

Interesting! Did not know that U-21s did not have to be included, so it's really about a 30man squad

you've clearly never played football manager.

Where did the rumour stating that John Brayford was going back to Derby on loan come from? It seemed like it came from trusted sources at the time yet seemed a very odd thing to happen!

It never came from Carl, City Gent or Myself.
Who were you thinking it came from ?



links

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=122434&hilit=John+Brayford

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=122434&p=1257735&hilit=John+Brayford#p1257735

No, he said it came from trusted sources

Interesting! Did not know that U-21s did not have to be included, so it's really about a 30man squad

you've clearly never played football manager.

Er, afraid not

I think I put out a similar thread Tuesday morning about the 25 man squad.
I believe there is something in the Brayford rumour which appeared in the Sunday People paper last week.
Until now Conway as not had a lookin and we recall what happened last year when he wasn't picked ?
I think Malky will again have his work cut out again keeping everyone happy this year.

There all his signings so it wont be that tough for him