' Gary Medel '

Cardiff City cult hero Gary Medel loving life in the Welsh capital as Malky Mackay hails star midfielder
Saturday 9th Nov 2013.


Gary Medel's outstanding South Wales derby performance cemented his status as a fans' hero at the Bluebirds



Malky Mackay looked at a newspaper cutting about Chile’s World Cup heroes and smiled. The photograph of Gary Medel celebrating with two team-mates underlined again the coup Cardiff City had achieved by signing a player nicknamed El Pitbull.

“That press cutting put a smile on my face,” said Bluebirds manager Mackay. “The photograph was taken after the World Cup qualifier when Gary scored the winner to take Chile through the World Cup finals.

“There was a complete frenzy in Chile after that game (v Ecuador in Santiago). The photograph was of Chile’s three top players – Barcelona’s Alexis Sanchez, Aturo Vidal of Juventus and Gary Medel of Cardiff City.

“The caption on the press cutting carries the names of the three players and their clubs. It was a bit surreal when you look at that. It did put a smile on my face.”

Sanchez and Medel scored Chile’s goals against Ecuador in front of just under 50,000 spectators and sparked celebrations throughout Santiago and the whole country.

Early next week, after Cardiff City’s Premier League match against Aston Villa this afternoon, Medel heads off to join the Chile squad for their latest matches as they prepare for the World Cup finals in Brazil next summer.

Medel plays a defensive midfield role for Cardiff, operating in front of the back four and breaking up opposition attacks, while he has been playing at the heart of Chile’s back four.

That’s where he is expected to slot in for Chile against England at Wembley next Friday, when he will go head-to-head with Wayne Rooney, and then Brazil in Toronto, Canada the following week.


Mackay talked about the competition faced by Cardiff as they worked to sign Medel from Spanish club Seville and his delight when the Bluebirds got their man during the half-time break at Rio Ferdinand’s testimonial match between Manchester United and Seville at Old Trafford.

The Bluebirds boss revealed that at one stage during long negotiations it seemed Cardiff would miss out on their prize target - and he spoke of the pleasure in watching a player whose pass completion rate hit 99 per cent during the win at Fulham.

“Gary’s pass completion rate during the South Wales derby against Swansea was 96 per cent, while he hit 99 per cent against Fulham,” says Mackay. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen that before.

“We have someone we did a lot of work on before he came. There were a lot of reports, we spoke to various people. When you’ve got Xavi coming out in the Spanish press, as he did, saying he thinks his own club, Barcelona, should buy him then that is not a bad marker. People who keep the ball for your side are gold.

“There was strong competition for Gary and we did our business extremely well. The deal was completed with Gary’s representatives at half-time and he came back to South Wales with us.”

Cardiff paid £9m for Medel, breaking the Cardiff club transfer record for a third time last summer having already signed Andreas Cornelius (£8m) and Steven Caulker (£8.5m).

“When I saw Gary playing the way he did in that testimonial match against Manchester United, when I watched how comfortable he was coming to get the ball off his goalkeeper in front of 70,000 people, it confirmed, finally, he was the right player for Cardiff,” said Mackay.

“Along with everything else we knew that match confirmed he should be playing Premier League football and would be comfortable doing that.

“It confirmed, too, that he would start the season quickly and produce his best.

“Gary has settled in really well. He is someone who believes he should be playing at the top level which is what he is doing. He’s enjoying a new way of life and has adjusted well for somebody who has come from a completely different culture with only a sparse use of the language as well.

“In most matches so far we’ve seen someone who has been on the ball an awful lot, a player whose pass completion is a huge percentage compared to the average.

“He is someone who has made a real impact on our team. That’s why I signed him and why I kept trying to get him because at certain points we didn’t think we were going to succeed.

“At one stage we thought it was gone, but there was a stubbornness on my part to keep going until I actually saw him signing for somebody else.

“When we brought him in I was delighted and I remain delighted.

“Top players believe they should be involved and playing at the top level from the first day walk into a group and that is why they are top players.”



Medel, 26, has played in all 10 Premier League matches for Cardiff this season and has made a huge impression on his team-mates with Peter Whittingham saying: “I love playing alongside Gary. He’s great for me.

“We both like to get on the ball – and we like to keep it for our team. I felt comfortable having him close to me during the win against Swansea – an absolute pleasure. He is pure gold.

“Gary and I train together every day. He just wants to get on the ball and pass.

“It’s probably a thankless job he does, sitting in front of the back four and breaking up play. His value to us is unbelievable. He keeps the game ticking over and calms things down.”

The link between Medel and Whittingham will be crucial as Cardiff seek to earn a second successive victory to follow their 1-0 success against Swansea.

“Back to back wins at Premier League level are huge,” says Mackay. “Every three points you get in the Premier League are hard-earned and two wins in a row would be brilliant.

“If teams outside the top six win two games on the bounce they can suddenly leap up the table it’s so tight at this level.

“I was delighted we got an early win at home (3-2 v Manchester City) and one away from home (2-1 at Fulham). So back to back wins is something we can achieve.”