MEHMET DALMAN:
“Look, of Steve Morison’s signings last summer perhaps only Kion Etete and Tanner fit that bill? And it’s Erol who has given Tanner his chance here, whereas others were happy to loan him out. Erol worked hard with him, has picked him in the team and has been very vocal, supportive, in terms of Tanner, and others, getting their new deals.”
“When we put players on new contracts we obviously consult the manager’s opinion, although that doesn’t necessarily mean we do it, but clearly we wouldn't want players here who the manager himself didn’t want.”
The big downside at the moment for the Bluebirds, of course, is the knee injury to Ramsey who was in such inspirational goalscoring form. Verdicts vary on just when the Wales captain will return to action, but Dalman is remaining as positive as possible.
“Look, it’s shattering news, bad for Cardiff, bad for Wales,” starts Dalman. “But the good thing is Aaron himself does not feel it’s that bad. He’s not a doctor, of course, but any doctor will say if the patient is feeling good about things, then that’s a major positive.
“If Aaron doesn’t need surgery, then that’s a big bonus. If he does need it, then clearly that would be a blow. But the team say we’ll do well for Aaron in his absence, so when he does come back we’ll go for a top-six push.”
A bigger positive are the various court cases Cardiff have finally been able to put behind them, with Dalman himself able to focus more on the football these days. The most recent one was a settlement with the club insurers Miller over the Emiliano Sala tragedy, while the legal issues involving former chairman Sam Hammam and ex-director Michael Isaac are resolved.
“They have each been so draining,” admits Dalman, who gave a little insight in saying: “On the day itself there were 15,000 documents we had to go through on the Miller case.”
That obviously takes time away from the football, but Cardiff remain determined to pursue Nantes for damages over the Sala plane crash because they feel strongly about the matter. Previously football authorities have sided with Nantes owing to football rules, but the Bluebirds believe a court of the land might view things differently.
They are thought to be demanding up to £180million, but hopefully a settlement can be agreed on this one too before it reaches the French courts next year.
Before that, Bulut will look to strengthen in the January transfer window if possible, with a striker the main priority. A centre-half back-up is also on the agenda, while Bulut would ideally prefer to strengthen the midfield.
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