Background

• Formed in 1899 as Riverside FC.
• Adopted its current name in 1907.
• Entered the Football League in 1920.
• Highest finish: 2nd in the top division in 1923-24, losing out to Huddersfield on goal average.
• FA Cup winners 1927. FA Cup Runners-Up 1925 and 2008.
• Enjoyed many campaigns in the European Cup Winners Cup as winners of the Welsh Cup, losing in the semi-final to Hamburg in 1968.  They even beat Real Madrid in the first leg of their 1971 quarter final tie.
• Currently play at the Cardiff City Stadium, which has hosted the UEFA Super Cup and Women’s Champions League final, and is also home to the Welsh national side.
• Last Premier League season: 2013-14.
• Cardiff’s nickname is the Bluebirds, and they traditionally play in a blue kit. Controversial owner Vincent Tan (who also owns a stake in LA FC) changed the side’s home colours to red in 2012, angering fans. However, the club reverted to its traditional kit in January 2015 after Tan followed his mother’s advice on “togetherness, unity and happiness.

Last Season

• Cardiff finished in 2nd spot in the Championship behind Wolves, earning automatic promotion with 90 points (27 wins, 9 draws, 10 losses).
• Warnock imposed a direct style of play on the team, which led to the second-lowest average possession percentage (45.2%) and the lowest number of passes per 90 minutes (69.5) in the Championship.
• Cardiff’s style of play came under fire from Pep Guardiola in their FA Cup tie against Manchester City, as well as from Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo. In fact, Cardiff committed the most fouls in the Championship last season with 646. However, the Bluebirds had only one player sent off in the Championship all season, plus a second yellow card dismissal for Joe Bennett in the Cup.

The Manager

• Neil Warnock took over the reigns in October 2016. A divisive character in English football, he has been in management 1981. Cardiff are the fourth team that he has guided to the top flight, after Notts County, Sheffield United and QPR.

The Team

Goalkeepers:

• Neil Etheridge started between the sticks for all but one of Cardiff’s Championship fixtures last season. Joining on a free transfer from Walsall in June 2017, he kept 19 clean sheets last season and is set to become the first Filipino to play in the Premier League
• Alex Smithies is a new $3.9 million signing from Queens Park Rangers. Smithies kept 7 clean sheets last year and was voted QPR’s players’ player of the season.

Defenders:

• Lee Peltier has been a mainstay at right back since January 2015. He initially came through the ranks at Liverpool, and made one Champions League appearance for the Reds against Galatasaray. Peltier has never played in the top-flight, and some Bluebirds are concerned that he will be a weak link in the defence.
• Joe Bennett is about to enter his third season in the Cardiff defence. Bennett has proven himself to be a capable left-back in the Championship, and is a former Aston Villa and Middlesborough player.

  

• Sean Morrison was signed for $6.5 million in the summer of 2014 and has been captain of City since 2016, featuring in 163 games to date. Voted last year’s player of the season, he scored an impressive 7 goals as a centre-back. When Sheffield Wednesday made a bid of $3.9 million for him last season, Warnock remarked that the figure “wouldn’t even buy one of Morrison’s legs”.
• Sol Bamba is Morrison’s partner at centre-back.  The 33 year-old featured in all of the Bluebirds’ league fixtures last season, scoring 4 goals. Formerly of Leeds, Palermo (Italy) and Trabzonspor (Turkey), Bamba played 44 times for the Ivory Coast, including several games with Didier Drogba.
• Bruno Ecuele Manga is the third centre-back on the team. The Gabonese international joined Cardiff in 2014 from Lorient in a $5.7 million deal. Manga is the most confident with the ball at his feet of any centre-back on the team, but is prone to committing errors.
• Jazz Richards is the only Welshman in the team. Part of the Wales squad that made the Euro 2016 semi finals, he joined Cardiff thereafter but has struggled with injuries, making only 6 league appearances last season.
• Matthew Connolly is one of only two players from Cardiff’s previous Premier League squad in 2013-14.  He’s unlikely to play a significant role this season, although his defensive versatility could prove useful if injuries set in.
• Greg Cunningham signed for Cardiff in a reported $5.2 million deal this summer from Preston, and will challenge Joe Bennett for the left back position. Coming up through Man City’s youth system, he has 4 senior caps for the Republic of Ireland.

Midfielders:

• Joe Ralls has been ever-present in the centre of Cardiff’s midfield since 2014, and enjoyed his best season last year, picking up 7 goals. Highly rated by local media, Ralls has a tendency to disappear late in games.

  

• Aron Gunnarson has been a key part of the Bluebirds’ midfield since 2011. Gunnarson, who has captained Iceland to their first European Championship and World Cup, played 23 games for Cardiff in their last top-flight spell, and is well-known for his long throws. However, he has been plagued with injuries in recent years, leading to doubts over his ability to compete for the entire season.
• Callum Paterson was initially signed as a full-back from Hearts in summer 2017, but was  moved to midfield by Warnock. Named as Young Player of the Season, Paterson was Cardiff’s top league goalscorer last year, with a tally of 10, and is a current Scotland international.
• Junior Hoilett is a Canadian international – who scored in their quarter final defeat to Jamaica at University of Phoenix Stadium last summer.  Voted players’ player of the season last year, the winger scored 11 goals in all competitions, and also contributed 11 assists.
• Harry Arter joined Cardiff in a deadline day loan deal from Bournemouth. With 69 Premier League appearances under his belt, he brings much-needed top-flight experience to this Cardiff team. He also has 13 senior caps for the Republic of Ireland.
• Victor Camarasa, who also joined Cardiff on deadline day, is a box-to-box midfielder. On loan from Real Betis, Camarasa is looking to impress for the Bluebirds in order to earn a starting place on his return to La Liga. He was capped at U21 level for Spain.
• Josh Murphy signed for the Bluebirds from Norwich this summer, for a reported $14.3 million. A 23 year-old winger, Murphy has featured for England up to U20 level. His twin brother, Jacob, currently plays on the wing for Newcastle.
• Nathaniel Mendez-Laing is a former Wolves and Peterborough United winger who joined Cardiff on a free transfer in May 2017 from Rochdale.  He started 2017-18 in fine form, utilizing his pace to score 5 goals in 6 league and cup games, but only contributed a further goal all season.
• Loïc Damour is a tenacious, tough-tackling central midfielder who joined on a free transfer from Bourg-en-Bresse Péronnas in the third tier of French football last summer.  A former France U16, U17, and U18 international, he has also played for Strasbourg, Boulogne and Brussels.  Damour played 27 games for the Bluebirds in 2017-18.

Forwards:

• Kenneth Zohore has been Cardiff’s main option up top for the past two seasons, scoring 21 league goals. He attracted Premier League interest from Brighton last summer, but Warnock said that Zohore would leave the club only if he had “a heart attack and another manager took over”. Zohore’s dad is Drogba’s second cousin. A former Fiorentina, Copenhagen, and Brondby player, the 24 year-old was named in Denmark’s preliminary squad for the 2018 World Cup, but he failed to make the final cut.
• Bobby Reid joined from rivals Bristol City for a reported $13 million. He enjoyed a breakthrough season last year, scoring 19 goals in the league, but had only managed 8 goals in 93 games during the previous 3 seasons.
• Gary Madine signed from Bolton Wanderers in January 2018 for a reported £7.8 million, and has failed to score in 13 appearances. Needless to say, he isn’t held in high regard by some fans.
• Danny Ward was a $2 million capture from Rotherham in summer 2017, scoring 4 goals in 18 league appearances.  He missed the second half of last season through injury.

From the Ashes Prediction

Cardiff look set to face a relegation battle, and have already been written off by the experts and bookmakers. Yet, with a strong team spirit and a willingness to run through brick walls for their manager, don’t be surprised if pure grit sees them narrowly avoid the drop.