FLW takes a look at the three next Cardiff prospects who could break through in the near future
Cardiff City have opened up a real window of opportunity for young talent from within over the last few years.
It is a renewed stance that has, it must be said, been dictated to some extent owing to the ramifications introduced from the COVID-19 pandemic, in which the significant loss of matchday revenue tightened financial purse-strings up and down the country and, as such, preceded more player departures, thinner squads and and an increase in promotions through the academy.
Cardiff have been bruised by just that more than most.
Indeed, the pandemic had a real impact on the business empire of owner Vincent Tan, with many of his ventures away from the Welsh capital severely suffering.
As a result, Tan’s financial backing of Cardiff has not been able to be on the level of what it once was, leaving the club with only one sustainable option: to promote youth.
That still remains very much a work in progress.
Cardiff supporters have perhaps not seen quite the consistent influx of prospects in the first-team that they had hoped for yet, not chiefly owing to a lack of trust but instead, several players have failed to find themselves at the required level.
However, homegrown in the form of Rubin Colwill and Isaak Davies have both graduated to senior level with flying colours in recent years and the conveyor belt does not start and finish there, either.
With that in mind, we have predicted three young starlets at Cardiff who could well break into the first-team and catch your eye before long.
Kieron Evans
The 21-year-old winger possesses the largest degree of experience on this list, though much of that has not been obtained in Cardiff colours.
Evans spent last term on loan with Torquay United in the National League, and while he was unable to prevent their relegation to the sixth-tier, he did his reputation no harm with a series of promising displays.
Those performances subsequently followed during pre-season, where Evans played with a point to prove amid the fresh management of Erol Bulut and appeared one of his side’s sharpest and most lively outlets.
A technically gifted wide player capable on either flank, Evans is particularly adept at driving forward with the ball and utilizing his ball control and low centre of gravity to weave and drift between onrushing opposing defenders, while his deliveries into the area are also a key factor of his game.
The raw editions of those qualities have been on show for years during Evans’ time with the academy, but they now appear more refined and rounded.
Bulut himself has suggested that a League One loan switch may be the next step for the prospect before cementing himself in the first-team picture the season after, with Ollie Tanner seemingly receiving the nod to stay involved for the time being.
Evans has banged on the door, though, and he can be expected to do just that wherever he heads out this year too- and that experience should see him reared and readied to become a Championship regular in the near future.
Cian Ashford
Akin to Evans, Ashford has also generated a healthy level of excitement within the Welsh capital for quite some time now.
A positionally-flexible playmaker, the Wales youth international is adept in any forward position and is often among the goals for Cardiff at age-group level, be it setting them up or converting himself.
He is yet to instate himself within the first-team set-up at Cardiff as things stand, but having continually impressed for Darren Purse’s young side while making his competitive debut in the recent EFL Cup first round victory at home to Colchester United, it only seems a matter of time before he does so.
If that is not the case, Cardiff run the risk of him finding a fruitful pathway elsewhere, with both Leeds United and Manchester United previously believed to have taken a keen interest in Ashford.
Joel Colwill
Last but not least is the younger brother of the aforementioned Rubin, who is also held in a similarly-strong regard just like the attacking midfielder had been when he was flying through the club’s academy system.
But while Rubin is a progressive, ball-carrying attack-orientated player, the younger Colwill operates a bit deeper and has a more multi-faceted footballing arsenal.
He is an all-action presence in the middle of the park who will often snap at the heels of opponents, supply the engine room and press high out of possession, but he is also technically gifted enough to keep play ticking over, drive forward with the ball at his feet and arrive with effective late runs into the box.
The 18-year-old also made his proper debut against Colchester and did not provide a bad self-account either, although he does have plenty of work to do before he challenges for a place in what is now an extremely competitive Bluebirds midfield.
Still, if he continues his current trajectory then there is every chance he will make his outright breakthrough in the not-too-distant-future.
