Nathan Blake: " Lack of ambition? "

Cardiff City's next move will show whether letting Kenwyne Jones go displays a lack of ambition.

By Nathan Blake

4th Jan 2016

So, does letting Kenwyne Jones leave Cardiff City say something about the Bluebirds’ ambition this season?

Right now, I don’t know for sure – but we’re going to find out soon enough.

It looks like Jones won’t be at Cardiff City Stadium much longer after his contract negotiations broke down and talks with clubs abroad began.

For me it’s a shame because he’s the one player who Cardiff should keep if they wanted to give themselves a proper push towards the Premier League.

You can talk about whether he’s scored enough or performed enough but, for me, you only have to look at Cardiff when he hasn’t played.

It was good to see Joe Mason score against Blackburn with him and Tony Watt in attack for a much needed win, but over the season when Kenwyne hasn’t been there Cardiff haven’t looked anywhere near as threatening from an attacking point of view as when he’s in the side.

If you’re looking at the strikers, perhaps with the exception of Watt who’s come in for the last few games, no-one has produced. And It was the same last season.

Okay, Kenwyne has his critics, but it depends what you’re looking for: if you’re after a workaholic, you can have Eoin Doyle running around. But you’re not going to have the same threat as Kenwyne can give you, that aerial prowess, that power, that platform to play off.

That’s what he can give you even if you know he’s not going to close down like others might, press or run around like a madman. That’s not what he’s about, his strengths are his strengths and, for me, those qualities are of Premier League standard.

Look, he’s not irreplaceable. He’s not Wayne Rooney, he’s not Coutinho at Liverpool even, or Wilfried Bony when he was at Swansea, players who you’re really going to struggle to find another like.

But in Cardiff’s current squad of strikers, he’s the biggest threat – and by quite some margin.

It’s been well documented that Cardiff are cutting their wage bill so, yes, you can understand the reasons with his contract up at the end of the year and, as we’re led to believe, he’s a big earner at the club.

It doesn’t make it less disappointing though, or take away the fact you’re losing such a big attacking threat.

So, does it show a lack of ambition? I don’t know is the honest answer because it all depends what the club do next. If they go out an get a striker for, say, £4m who gets you the 15 goals that is the difference between a chance of promotion or not, then no, it’s not.

If you don’t replace him and go with strikers already got, or get in someone on the cheap who doesn’t offer that same threat I talk about, then what else do you expect? We’ll get that question answered over the next month.

But we’ve been asking questions about Cardiff and their plan or ambition for a while. Cut the wage bill by all means, but the signings that have come in have been of a different ball game to the ones we saw when the club was in the Premier League or were bound for the Premier League.

We have seen a lot come in and, with no disrespect to those players, they are of a different ilk, many of them having not played at that level and will never play at that level.

So is it lack of ambition or lack of understanding? Why bring so many of those players in in the first place if there was a need to cut the wages when there was no need for it? We don’t know what the plans are in the long, medium or short terms – or those of us on the outside don’t.

We don’t hear from the owner, the chief executive does what he does but I for one have never really heard a concrete plan about where this is leading. They all speak about getting to the Premier League but what’s the strategy to get there?

Thankfully the win over Blackburn at least keeps City in touching distance of the play-offs because there was a danger of a gap growing before those three points. They could have easily found themselves in a situation of slipping down into those lower midtable spots which can really hit you psychologically.

I watched the Boro-Derby game over the weekend and you can see the mindset on the players, the confidence that comes with continuity and consistency, that they know they are truly pushing for promotion and no-one is going to budge them from it.

The thing is that Cardiff are capable of beating either of them, like they are anyone on their day, but I’m not sure they have it in them to put together a run of consistency to get that confidence that can push them into a play-off spot or even higher.

But, like I say, we’ll get a lot of answers in January.

http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/foot ... w-10680083?

Blakey got it spot on for me. OK Kenwyn had a couple of bad games but the guy is a different class and for me we are going to struggle without him.

I think where Blakey is right is his speculation on what the club's real plans are. As he said, we don't hear from the owner; it speaks volumes to me.

Kenwynne can certainly be more than adequately replaced I have no doubt but it will probably cost more money than Tan appears to want to outlay now. We will not progress with journeymen and a big burly striker who can find the net will be essential if we want to remain in the playoff hunt, but qualities such as energy, tenacity and determination will also be required,

Jones is so limited. Lazy, lacks any mobility, no pace and often a poor first touch. I'd prefer two pacy strikers or a real number 10 like Alex Pritchard(best player in Championship last season).

Just laughable
Blakey at it again
One week he wants the debt reduced
This week he wants us to keep Jones who we can't afford
Jones is a free agent in summer has been offered a new contract on terms we can afford and he's turned it down
He cost us £50k with his bonuses against Brentford
Might aswell get him out now and save the wages
IMO there's a few more that need to go who we also can't afford

I think it's time for him to go. His wages don't bother me but I'd rather see a quicker, more mobile strike partnership up front.

Blakey got it spot on for me. OK Kenwyn had a couple of bad games but the guy is a different class and for me we are going to struggle without him.

Accurate assessment of the club and its leadership.
Without Jones we have no real threat.

Jones is so limited. Lazy, lacks any mobility, no pace and often a poor first touch. I'd prefer two pacy strikers or a real number 10 like Alex Pritchard(best player in Championship last season).

If all you say is true then Isnt it sad that he is still, or was, our biggest threat.

You say you prefer two pacey strikers... Wouldn't we all! But this is a dinasaur managing our team you are talking about.

He's had long enough to get some pace in the side and most of his signings are loaned out, on the bench or in dispute with the club.

I agree about Pritchard.... But we will struggle to attract dexent players the way we play.

Jones is so limited. Lazy, lacks any mobility, no pace and often a poor first touch. I'd prefer two pacy strikers or a real number 10 like Alex Pritchard(best player in Championship last season).

we got who we got we can't just choose what players we have.but getting rid of our only proven goal scorer at this level is criminal to say the least

Jones is so limited. Lazy, lacks any mobility, no pace and often a poor first touch. I'd prefer two pacy strikers or a real number 10 like Alex Pritchard(best player in Championship last season).

we got who we got we can't just choose what players we have.but getting rid of our only proven goal scorer at this level is criminal to say the least

it should be the useless journey men getting moved on not our best striker ffs

Slade has demonstrated he is incapable of finding lower league gems like Bobby Gould did when Coventry were in the old Div 1. For those not old enough, Gould had been on Div 2 got the sky blues job and "stole" all the decent players from Div 2 & 3 and made them competitive. I remember because he took my fav player the one and only Dave Bennett.

We had a good squad with a :

Midfield of Noone, Whitts, Gunnarson, Digkacoi, Ralls & Pilkington Does that show a lack of ambition ? How many are better ? only Hulls ?

A defence of Fabio (champions league) Manga (International Captain) Turner, Morrison and peltier all decent Championship players. Oh and the best keeper in the division

Forwards - Jones & Macheda both got premier league goals, and you'll be hard pushed for anybody to say they are not top end championship and a million pound goal machine from the lower leagues (it just hasn't worked for him)


The lack of ambition has come to bite us, but its not in the playing staff.

Just laughable
Blakey at it again
One week he wants the debt reduced
This week he wants us to keep Jones who we can't afford
Jones is a free agent in summer has been offered a new contract on terms we can afford and he's turned it down
He cost us £50k with his bonuses against Brentford
Might aswell get him out now and save the wages
IMO there's a few more that need to go who we also can't afford

How many more times must it be said,as a footballer, Blake was one of the best, as a pundit he's one of the worst

All of this crap about lack of ambition etc etc etc, FFP rules are starting to bite, we only heard a couple of weeks ago that a number of championship clubs were under transfer embargos for falling fowl of the rules. It was mentioned a few weeks back that we are a club were very close to the edge on the finances and with the parashoot payments ending next year there are some serious issues to address.
The way it is all panning out is that only clubs prepared to throw megabucks at it to go straight up will succeed and they run the risk if they miss out on promotion they are up shit creak with FFP rules the following season. The decision to offload a totally over priced, lazy forward (he is possibly the highest paid player in the division) who has only just got into double figures last season is a no-brainer.

I think it's time for him to go. His wages don't bother me but I'd rather see a quicker, more mobile strike partnership up front.

Same.

Just laughable
Blakey at it again
One week he wants the debt reduced
This week he wants us to keep Jones who we can't afford
Jones is a free agent in summer has been offered a new contract on terms we can afford and he's turned it down
He cost us £50k with his bonuses against Brentford
Might aswell get him out now and save the wages
IMO there's a few more that need to go who we also can't afford

He makes no sence Steve like you said debt down story one week then we lack ambition the next you couldn't make it up as both don't go together it's as simple as that, ambition costs in most cases

Blakey got it spot on for me. OK Kenwyn had a couple of bad games but the guy is a different class and for me we are going to struggle without him.

Accurate assessment of the club and its leadership.
Without Jones we have no real threat.

The way he has played over the last month he won't be missed. He clearly wasn't interested, and if Saadi and Watt are both fit for the rest of the season we'll wonder why we kept him for so long.

Lack of Ambition is just a label another is getting value for money. Jones £35pw value for money?

Blakey got it spot on for me. OK Kenwyn had a couple of bad games but the guy is a different class and for me we are going to struggle without him.

Accurate assessment of the club and its leadership.
Without Jones we have no real threat.

The way he has played over the last month he won't be missed. He clearly wasn't interested, and if Saadi and Watt are both fit for the rest of the season we'll wonder why we kept him for so long.

Agree.

His big wages will cause discontent in the squad. He's probably on 3 or 4 times as much as some of the other players. I obviously am aware this is probably the same in most teams . However he's no Henri etc and no doubt it pisses some of the players off when he can't be arsed