SEAM MORRISON COLUMN TALKS VINCENT TAN

Sean Morrison column: The truth about Vincent Tan and the change he should now make
WalesOnline

A lot of people have a lot of opinions about Vincent Tan. I understand why, he is eccentric and some of the stories can sound a bit wild. But I can tell you that his passion for Cardiff City runs deep.

I get the criticism. I was at the club more than eight years and I probably only met him 10 times. You would expect to see the owner more than that.

He has pumped countless millions into Cardiff over the years and some people rightly point towards some of that money being misspent. But his financial commitment has been staggering and admirable.

His passion for Cardiff, however, cannot be questioned. I can tell you that first hand from my time as a player at the club.

That famous story about him coming in to tell the boys to shoot from the halfway line is most certainly true. But the thought process behind it was interesting and made me think more deeply about it.

Back in Malaysia, before he was rich and successful, he was trying to get his restaurant franchise off the ground and he told us that he got turned down time and time again. He got that one 'Yes' and never looked back. It was a lesson, of sorts, in never giving up.

Incredibly, he applied that logic to the lads' shooting. His theory was that if you try and try and try again, from wherever on the pitch, one of those shots is bound to go in. It's flawed logic, of course, and he was by no means qualified to tell the players or the managers how to do their jobs, but the backstory was interesting to me nonetheless.

I remember in 2020 when we were flying up the table thanks to Lee Tomlin's ridiculous form in front of goal and, suddenly, we found ourselves in the play-offs with a golden chance to bounce straight back up to the Premier League.

Before our two-legged play-off semi-final against Fulham, Vincent held a meeting with us on Zoom to tell us what he wanted to see. Neil Harris, the manager at the time, had to sit and watch his boss tell the players what he wanted to see, close the laptop, then tell us what he actually wanted to see from us.

Vincent was desperate for us to get back to the Premier League that year. His business was losing a lot of money because of Covid. Unfortunately it wasn't to be.

But I greatly admire his passion. He has had people around him, family members, telling him to sell the club for ages. He's got his money, does he need this stress? But he continues because he wants Cardiff to succeed again.

Taking some of the emotion out of it would actually be a good thing for Vincent. When things aren't going well, he can be disconnected. Everyone jumps on the coattails when it’s good and steps back when it’s bad. It has to be more consistent.

He genuinely watches all the games, loves the Premier League and actually thinks he knows what he's talking about, even though he employs people to do that.

I just wish he spent his money more wisely. I said for years, to the players, when I was at Cardiff that the club needed a director of football and my opinion on that has not changed. Everyone at the club thought the same as me at the time.

Relegation has been on the cards for some years. Internally, we could see standards were slipping. Starting in 2020, when I was there, you could see the little drop-offs, the five percent one year, the 10 percent the next year. It doesn't sound a lot but it quickly stacks up. That's when a director of football steps in to stop the rot.

Directors of football sometimes get a bad reputation, especially in the Premier League, jumping from club to club. But in my opinion, if you get it right then it is the path to success.

I know Vincent has been burned in the past and is said to be against the idea, but I think Cardiff is ripe for that sort of appointment. It's what they've been crying out for.

And I actually think they are in a perfect position to appoint one right now – strike while in a position of strength.


'I want someone to come in and ruffle some feathers'

I've written before about my fear that Brian Barry-Murphy could get poached due to the fantastic job he's doing at Cardiff. What I would hate to see is for the club to rip up all the good work Brian has done and appoint a new head coach with a completely different philosophy. I've seen that happen too many times at Cardiff.

That insidious cycle of appointing a manager, backing him in the transfer market, then having to start from square one when a completely different manager is appointed a year down the line. It's counter-productive. The money you spend in transfer fees and paying off players doesn't bear thinking about.

Then the cycle repeats and it creates destabilisation and a negative environment.

If Brian were to get poached tomorrow, who is on the short list right now? A director of football would be tasked with keeping on top of such things.

I love what Brian has done and I'd love a director of football be of a similar ilk to him. Someone young, energetic, with a desire to play good, modern football and with a desire to create a 'Cardiff Way', so to speak.

The club cannot rely on freak promotions, like we achieved almost out of the blue in 2018, it needs a plan for sustained success. It needs consistency and a repeatable model where square pegs can slot into square holes, again and again, as the club evolves.

And Brian, and the coaching staff with him, has done so much of the hard work already. I love the direction in which he has taken Cardiff and feel like another layer above him, acting as a conduit between Brian and the board, would help to strengthen that.

The academy is in a position of strength, they are in great hands with Gavin Chesterfield, Darren Purse and Matt Bloxham and play some excellent football. It all starts there and there is room to grow and build.

I want someone to come in and ruffle some feathers, just like Brian has. There are too many 'Yes men' in football and I don't think Brian is one of those – and I wouldn't want the director of football to be, either.

When I was a player at Cardiff, the best team meetings were the ones where we used to argue or go at each other about tactics or something technical. We would hash it out and come to the right solution. That's the sort of character you need at Cardiff.

It wouldn't be an easy job and it might put a few noses out of joint — there have been people there who have done parts of that role for some years — but in my view it's the necessary step to take Cardiff to the next level.

An interesting read from an ‘insider’ point of view

Sean Morrison is a Cardiff City great and former Bluebirds captain. He skippered the side during the 2018/29 Premier League season. A dominant centre-back, 'Moz' was at the club for more than eight years and racked up almost 300 appearances

Others on here will have a different view and with good reason

However, this Forum puts all information out there, palatable or unpalatable, for interest and debate

Long may that continue!

Do you think he would be up for the job himself ?

I know some people will say that he has no experience and it’s a daft idea, but think about it, he loves the club, he loves the area (he still lives locally i believe) and he is a footballing man, and for those reasons I think a) it would work and b) he would stick around long term given the opportunity.

Don’t get me wrong he may not even want it, but why put the article out when every fan and there dog knows the club is in need of one.

You had me there for a second! I thought you meant Vincent Tan!

Personally, I would love Sean Morrison involved in some capacity but not sure in what role!

Perhaps this was his ‘sales pitch’?!?!

Is he not helping with the youngsters; or has he departed that role?

Do you think he would be up for the job himself ?

I know some people will say that he has no experience and it’s a daft idea, but think about it, he loves the club, he loves the area (he still lives locally i believe) and he is a footballing man, and for those reasons I think a) it would work and b) he would stick around long term given the opportunity.

Don’t get me wrong he may not even want it, but why put the article out when every fan and there dog knows the club is in need of one.

This is what I was thinking the more I read it , is he hinting that he could do the job , he has the passion for this club ,
Would love to see him in some type of role like this , but on the other hand I hope Tan sells this summer . We need fresh owners .
But yeh Mozza top geezer

You had me there for a second! I thought you meant Vincent Tan!

Personally, I would love Sean Morrison involved in some capacity but not sure in what role!

Perhaps this was his ‘sales pitch’?!?!

Is he not helping with the youngsters; or has he departed that role?

I think he has previously said that he was helping with the kids, not sure if it was a permanent or even a paid role, it may have been a requirement if he’s doing his badges, again not sure if he even is ?

You had me there for a second! I thought you meant Vincent Tan!

Personally, I would love Sean Morrison involved in some capacity but not sure in what role!

Perhaps this was his ‘sales pitch’?!?!

Is he not helping with the youngsters; or has he departed that role?

I think he has previously said that he was helping with the kids, not sure if it was a permanent or even a paid role, it may have been a requirement if he’s doing his badges, again not sure if he even is ?

Thank you!

Always a credit to himself and thus club!

Thanks for posting this Sven - good read . I believe this article lies behind a Walesonline paywall and I am loath to contribute anything to Walesonline.

Thanks again

Thanks for posting this Sven - good read . I believe this article lies behind a Walesonline paywall and I am loath to contribute anything to Walesonline.

Thanks again

You’re welcome!

It seems many agree with you, too!

Yes thank you for that article, an interesting read.
For me, it underlines that while Tan has his faults, he does have a passion for the club, and (although he has wasted some of it), he has put lots of his own money into CCFC.
Of course, there are plenty of worse (and plenty of better) owners out there.
Be careful what you wish for.
As I have said before, some of the “evil dictator” threads are just plain silly!

No one is perfect , many clubs have had a lot of poor owners and some clubs have been destroyed by the agendas of these owners, yes Tan is difficult to like however I do appreciate his locality over the years ,many owner's are very short term beast's.

Better the devil you know sorings to mind.

Interesting read especially about DOF.
Can’t help but love Morrison

A good read that and like most would like to see Morrison involved in some capacity.

It’s good to read an insiders view on things like especially from an honest and respected ex player.

He’s Desperately looking for a Jo , went to Rotherham after us and not done anything since 2024

Morrison is gonna be persona non grata now

Yes thank you for that article, an interesting read.
For me, it underlines that while Tan has his faults, he does have a passion for the club, and (although he has wasted some of it), he has put lots of his own money into CCFC.
Of course, there are plenty of worse (and plenty of better) owners out there.
Be careful what you wish for.
As I have said before, some of the “evil dictator” threads are just plain silly!

The biggest problem with Tan is his stubbornness. He's put huge amounts of money in and really should be the owner of a Premier League club for the investment. Instead we are in league one. He should have figured out a long time ago he's not great at running a football operation and put someone in charge of it. The lack of communication is also massive. There's so much water under the bridge on this but. I think a statements from him saying he's learnt from a few mistakes and reverting back to our real badge would go a long way

Yes thank you for that article, an interesting read.
For me, it underlines that while Tan has his faults, he does have a passion for the club, and (although he has wasted some of it), he has put lots of his own money into CCFC.
Of course, there are plenty of worse (and plenty of better) owners out there.
Be careful what you wish for.
As I have said before, some of the “evil dictator” threads are just plain silly!

The biggest problem with Tan is his stubbornness. He's put huge amounts of money in and really should be the owner of a Premier League club for the investment. Instead we are in league one. He should have figured out a long time ago he's not great at running a football operation and put someone in charge of it. The lack of communication is also massive. There's so much water under the bridge on this but. I think a statements from him saying he's learnt from a few mistakes and reverting back to our real badge would go a long way

He put people in charge. Dalman and Choo.