Cardiff City

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Here are the Opta stats ahead of tonight's Championship match between Birmingham City and Cardiff City.

• Birmingham City have won just one of their last 10 league meetings with Cardiff City (D3 L6) though that sole win did come in the reverse fixture this season (1-0).

• Cardiff City are unbeaten across their last four away league games against Birmingham City (W2 D2) whilst also scoring two or more goals in each of the last three, including a 2-0 victory in this fixture last season.

• Each of Birmingham’s last six league games at St Andrew’s have been decided by a one-goal margin (W3 L3), with the Blues beating Preston 1-0 in their most recent such game there.

• Cardiff have won four of their last six away league games in midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday), though have lost two of their last three such games.

• Five of Cardiff’s last eight Championship goals away from home have come from corners, while 10 of their 22 overall on the road in the competition in 2023-24 have come that way (45%).

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Erol Bulut’s Cardiff City future should have been sorted out midway through the season, according to former Bluebirds striker Ian Walsh.

Bulut sees his contract expire at the end of the season having been named Cardiff boss on a one-year deal last summer.

His team are destined for a mid-table Championship finish, which represents significant progress following last season’s scrape with relegation, although Cardiff have faced some criticism from fans over their playing style as well as a lack of consistency.

As yet there is no clarity yet on whether owner Vincent Tan will ask Bulut to lead Cardiff in the 2024-25 campaign.

Speaking on BBC Radio Wales’ Call Rob programme, ex-Wales international Walsh criticised Cardiff’s failure to hand Bulut a new deal.

“How can you run a professional organisation and be in this situation where you have got a manager who has got to 56 points?” Walsh said.

“Five games to go, let’s say they just get four points – it’s 60 points in a season where nobody expected anything from them.

“This should have been sorted out in January. Irrespective of whether you feel Bulut is the man for the job – and I know fans are saying he is not up to it – he has achieved things at Cardiff City that a lot of people thought were never going to happen this season.

“Yes it’s been fluctuating but overall you have to make a decision for the manager and for the players.

“Where is the club going? The fans have got to stand up now and demand something from Vincent Tan.”

Rob Phillips
BBC Sport Wales football correspondent

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They are the issues at the heart of the debate over manager Erol Bulut’s future at Cardiff City.

Yes, progress has been made under the former Fenerbahce boss. But for some fans the football is, well, boring.

So should substance triumph over style? Or may be it is not quite as simple as that anyway.

This is Cardiff City after all.

The debate was brought into sharp focus last weekend as the Cardiff City Supporters' Trust issued a statement demanding the Bluebirds make a decision over whether to renew Bulut’s contract this summer after his first season at the helm.

Bulut’s team then gave a passive performance and were beaten 3-1 by visitors Hull City, to virtually extinguish already slim hopes of claiming a play-off place.

Going into Wednesday’s game at Birmingham, Cardiff are 11th in the table on 56 points with five matches remaining this season - and even a mid-table finish would be an improvement on recent campaigns.

This time a year ago, Cardiff fans were sweating on Championship survival. Their team failed to reach 50 points and their cause was helped significantly by a points deduction for Reading, who ended up going down.

In 2022, Cardiff hit the 50-point mark – but only in their penultimate game of the campaign.

This season they could still surpass their 2021 tally of 68 points, when they finished eighth.

So the progress under Bulut is palpable. Admittedly that was not a high bar after the past two seasons, but Cardiff fans will be happy not to have had relegation concerns this term.

And Bulut could point to problems he has overcome, such as a greatly restricted contribution from star summer signing Aaron Ramsey and limited spending in January – the first window following the lifting of an embargo which had prevented Cardiff paying fees for players.

Yet not all are convinced by Bulut’s style.

Passive - a word Bulut used to describe the first-half show against Hull - slow, negative and boring are the common criticisms.

See also Nathan Blake’s “front foot” comments on these pages.

Though it matters not how goals are scored, Cardiff have the lowest number of goals from open play in the Championship (20) and while they are regarded as a counter-attacking team, they have yet to score on the counter this season.

That said they are top of the table for goals from set-pieces (19), and nobody complained too much when Neil Warnock steered Cardiff to promotion in 2018 with a side who had the joint highest number of goals from set-piece situations (21).

Undoubtedly the lack of a prolific striker is a problem, but then only Preston and relegated Rotherham have a lower shots per game ratio, so how many chances would any forward get?

Is the Bulut approach a work in progress? Could this season's style develop expansively with better players on board?

Or is this his chosen approach to succeeding?

What is it about lies, damned lies and statistics?

All these elements make for a passionate debate among a loyal supporter base on BBC Radio Wales' Call Rob programme as well as lively fans' forums.

Such is the way Cardiff are run, the opinions are unlikely to influence the only man who will make the decision on Bulut's future – owner Vincent Tan.

Will he recognise the clear progress? Or will his well-documented desire for players – including goalkeepers – to have shots on goal sway his thinking?

There is no doubt chairman Mehmet Dalman is backing Bulut, having led the quest for his signature last year.

Dalman will be keen for Bulut to have his contract extended and continue to build on the development there has been this season.

If Bulut is staying, it would be fair on him and his family to be told now.

The uncertainty is dominating the agenda, not helping the club at present or in future planning.

Of course, it's possible the debate will count for nothing. At the end of the season Bulut could decide to walk.

His reputation is such that he would have little trouble in finding another post.

If there is a parting of the ways, the Bluebirds' managerial merry-go-round would stir into action again – with Cardiff looking for their sixth 'permanent' manager in three years.

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Former Cardiff City striker Nathan Blake says fans want to see the Bluebirds playing on the front foot.

Cardiff have made progress this season under Erol Bulut, with the club destined for a mid-table Championship finish after last year’s relegation near-miss.

Nevertheless, Bulut’s team have at times faced criticism from supporters for their tactical approach.

Bulut’s future in Wales remains uncertain, with his contract set to expire this summer, and Blake has suggested the former Fenerbahce boss could – at times – look to take a more positive approach.

“The manager is saying the team was too passive,” Blake told BBC Radio Wales Sport in the wake of Saturday’s 3-1 home defeat to Hull City.

“At no point did I see him freaking out and telling people to squeeze, press or get up the pitch.

“How they set up is clearly how they have been training all week.

“You will get away with it here or there [with the fans], or if they think they are coming up against a team who are flying at the top of the league and this is the way they can beat them. It’s acceptable [in that situation].

“But on the whole they want to see you on the front foot, not the back foot.

“As the manager, you are not responsible for players’ desire and commitment, but how you set up and how you ask the team to play will allow your team to be super aggressive, pressing the ball, or if you say to them sit deep, two banks of four and frontmen drop in as well [it will be different].

“I don’t see progression in the way Cardiff are playing.”

Hull was a third defeat in four matches for Bulut’s men, who return to action at relegation-threatened Birmingham City on Wednesday.

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Cardiff City fear they could be without on-loan Manchester City defender Josh Wilson-Esbrand for the rest of the season.

Wilson-Esbrand is due to undergo a scan on a hamstring injury which forced him off during Saturday's 3-1 Championship home defeat by Hull City.

The 21-year-old had come on as a second-half substitute but lasted only 18 minutes before pulling up.

Wilson-Esbrand, who was on loan at French club Reims before switching to Cardiff in January, has made eight starts and three substitute appearances for the Bluebirds.

If the injury is significant - as Cardiff fear - then the England Under-21 international may miss the remaining five matches of the season.

Cardiff travel to relegation-threatened Birmingham City on Wednesday night, where they could again be without Wales midfielder Rubin Colwill.

Their injury list also includes striker Kion Etete and midfielder Ryan Wintle, who both missed the Hull defeat, as did Republic of Ireland international Callum O'Dowda.

Cardiff will go to St Andrew's looking to improve on a run of three defeats in the last four games, a run which has left them 11th in the table.

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Manager Erol Bulut bemoaned Cardiff City's lack of consistency after they slumped to another home defeat against Hull City.

Saturday's loss was a third in four Championship games, leaving the Bluebirds 11th in the Championship table.

They had won at promotion contenders Coventry City on Easter Monday but, with defeats at home to Sunderland and Hull either side of that notable victory, Cardiff have shown themselves to be frustratingly inconsistent.

The Hull result also means Cardiff have lost as many games, nine, as they have won at home this season.

“This is the Championship, first of all. Anything can happen," said Bulut.

“We have this all season. We’ve been really good for three, four or five games then we have a break and don’t have the consistency.

“This is our biggest point about the team when we think about next year. We have to manage the players and the players must manage themselves to be consistent.

“There have been too many ups and downs during the season. You can see then you cannot push to the higher level, you’re only in mid table.”

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The Cardiff City Supporters’ Trust has expressed concerns about "growing uncertainty" over the future of manager Erol Bulut.

Bulut, whose one-year contract expires at the end of this season, has repeatedly stated his desire to extend his stay at Cardiff - but the club have not yet offered him a new deal.

In a statement on Saturday, the Supporters' Trust's board said: “We are reliably informed that the decision on who shall be the club’s manager for the 2024-25 season, and on what terms, has been solely in the hands of club owner Vincent Tan for some time.

“The Trust Board understands that as of today he has not made a decision on whether or not a new contract should be offered to the current manager Erol Bulut or the search should begin for a new manager.

“We strongly urge the owner to make that decision as speedily as possible to remove growing uncertainties and disquiet amongst fans about the matter.

"Cardiff City fans deserve certainty, given that at this time they are being asked to renew their season tickets or become new season ticket holders.”

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Cardiff City manager Erol Bulut says they will be without Rubin Colwill and Callum O'Dowda for Saturday's game against Hull City.

The Bluebirds go into the match at Cardiff City Stadium in 11th in the Championship, one place and two points below the visitors.

Cardiff should, however, have Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey available for selection, though Bulut said he will not start on Saturday.

"After the last game I was saying the injury was not that big, but he [Colwill] will be out for the next two games with the ankle injury," said Bulut.

"We have Callum O'Dowda injured as well, he won't be with us this weekend.

"It’s a hamstring injury from the last game, but he might only be out of Saturday’s game

"[Aaron Ramsey] trained with us with no problems today and we will hopefully have him with us, but not to start."

Cardiff, like Hull, are not mathematically out of the race for a play-off place, but either side would likely have to win all their remaining games for an outside chance.

The Bluebirds are currently eight points behind Norwich in sixth place, with six games remaining in the Championship this season.

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Cardiff City manager Erol Bulut says he "does not think" they will have striker Kion Etete back before the end of the season.

The Bluebirds have six Championship games left to play this campaign, the first of which is at home against Hull City on Saturday.

The 22-year-old has scored six goals for Cardiff this season - three in the league - but has not featured since the Bluebirds beat Bristol City on 2 March.

“He’s [Etete] still out with the groin injury," said Bulut.

"He was back for some training sessions but then he felt a pain again.

"I don’t think he’ll be back before the end of the season.”

Cardiff have turned to Yakou Meite, Karlan Grant, Josh Bowler and Callum Robinson to lead the line in Etete's absense.

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Captain Joe Ralls says there has been “massive progress” at Cardiff City under manager Erol Bulut, whose future at the club remains uncertain.

Bulut, 49, has publicly asked the Bluebirds’ board of directors for clarity about his situation, with his contract expiring at the end of the Championship campaign.

Bulut says uncertainty over his future has affected his players’ performances.

But with six games of the season remaining, Cardiff have already guaranteed a considerably higher finish in the Championship than last season, when they ended up just one place above the relegation zone.

Monday's 2-1 win at Coventry City leaves them eight points off the play-off places in 11th.

“It’s been massive progress, to be in with a shout of the play-offs,” said Ralls.

“Looking at it all season, there's been progress, we’re just outside the top 10 now. It would be great to try and get as high as we can, to finish strong.

“The manager has helped us a lot, we had a full pre-season with him. The only thing that's been lacking this season has been the consistency - every club looks for it, it's so hard to get.

“We've been a little bit up and down but we've shown real good signs of where we could be.

"Hopefully whatever the situation, we've got to look and build on that and try and get that consistency next season and towards the end of the season. There's still six games to go and we’ll try and finish as strong as we can”.

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Rubin Colwill should be fit in time for Cardiff City's Championship fixture at home to Hull on Saturday.

The Wales international attacking midfielder missed Monday's 2-1 win at Coventry with an ankle injury.

But manager Erol Bulut is confident it is only a minor issue.

“He had a problem with his ankle," Bulut told BBC Radio Wales.

“I think yes [he will back for Hull].”

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Manager Erol Bulut would like to see Liverpool loanee Nat Phillips return to Cardiff City next season - but does not know where either of their futures lie.

Centre-back Phillips has impressed for Cardiff in the Championship since joining on loan from the Reds in January.

He will return to Liverpool at the end of this season, when Bulut's contract will also expire.

Neither player nor manager has opened talks about extending their stay with Cardiff.

“We have to speak about different things. I know he has one more year on his contract with Liverpool," Bulut told BBC Radio Wales.

“If I’m the coach here again next season, I don’t know, but I would like to see him again here.

“Nat came in January and settled in really well. He’s one of the leaders in defence.”

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Cardiff City will not give up on their faint Championship play-off hopes, says manager Erol Bulut.

Monday's 2-1 win at Coventry means the Bluebirds are eight points adrift of the top six with only six games left.

Cardiff were in more realistic contention for the play-offs earlier this season and, although their chances are now rather remote, Bulut is not ruling anything out.

“It will be really difficult but we will not give up," he told BBC Radio Wales.

“If we had beaten Sunderland [Cardiff lost 2-0 at home on Friday], maybe I would speak a bit differently.

“We will fight for the rest of the season, for the last six games. Anything can happen. My guys will give everything.”

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Erol Bulut says Aaron Ramsey is not yet ready to return to Cardiff City’s starting side.

Wales captain Ramsey, 33, made just his 10th Cardiff appearance since returning to his boyhood club last summer when he came on as a half-time substitute in Friday’s defeat to Sunderland.

Ramsey had recently returned to action after a calf injury, having been out for five months earlier in the season with a knee problem.

“Physically he is not on the level that he can be in the starting XI,” said Cardiff boss Bulut.

“We used him [against Sunderland] for 45 minutes.

“In the second half we put him in and he started to change things a little bit offensively, but you cannot expect one or two players to change the whole game when you have so many players [not playing well].

“We don’t need to speak about Ramsey’s quality. He now needs games. He needs maybe one or two more games, then he can have a start.”