"Absolutely incredible" - Cardiff City backed to appoint Omer Riza but warning issued | OneFootball

FLW's Cardiff fan pundit has suggested that Riza is defintely within a shout of securing the managerial vacancy after 5-0 battering versus Plymouth.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Following Cardiff City's fantastic 5-0 triumph over Plymouth Argyle last Saturday, caretaker boss Omer Riza finds himself in a strong position of landing the role permanently.

Riza has made his mark in the four games he's had to take charge of following the sacking of Erol Bulut at the end of September.

Many Cardiff fans were baffled at the situation of Riza landing the job, but following recent successes, the Turk may have persuaded the Bluebirds faithful to become their new boss.

The 5-0 win showed everything that has been expected from Cardiff fans, and brought a sense of joy back to the Cardiff City Stadium, which has been lacking.

Much has been speculated over the vacancy and, after a month of deliberating, have the Bluebirds finally found their man?

FLW's Cardiff City fan pundit, Jack Price, is keen to see Riza land the job permanently after the 5-0 drubbing of Plymouth, but stresses the Bluebirds must walk into it with caution.

"Omar Riza has definitely put his name in the hat to become the new Cardiff City manager, there is no doubt about that.

"There were quite a lot of reservations over him after the Bristol City draw, we were in cruise control and deservedly went into the lead, but Riza decided to go into a five-back and put bodies behind the ball and Bristol City punished us for doing that and made us settle for a point.

"However, the Plymouth performance was absolutely incredible in all aspects. I think he got it bang on with his selections, we were structured, organised, hard to breakdown, and in possession we were expansive, free-flowing, dynamic, and there was a constant high tempo every time we had the ball.

"He's also really instilled a sense of confidence which our players had been lacking. We almost had that taken away by Bulut. The likes of Ruben Colwill, Ollie Tanner and even Alex Robertson, for what reason they didn't work under Bulut, we'll never know, but now they're key staples in the side.

"Even after the small handful of games he's had in the role, you can see the improvement. In particular, Colwill is one of the in-form players across the entire league at the moment.

"Getting the best out of our young, high-potential talented players, who are the future of this club, is a key call of duty, and he is showing that he is capable of doing that.

"I wouldn't be so quick to offer him a contract right now. However, he is certainly doing his prospects no harm whatsoever. I think the next two games are crucial, but even if we were to only win one, I could see him getting it permanently.

"He's earning his stripes and getting a lot of credit from the fans. We enjoy his style of player and ability to develop young players and that's what we want.

"Of course, we may have to wait a bit longer, and not get drawn into the trap of a new manager bounce, but I think every week he's increasing his odds, it's gone from being something I was against to something I welcome now."

Riza fits the bill to become Cardiff boss

Another risk for Cardiff to take, but these four games alone may have proven Riza's worth. You can argue it is a rushed appointment, but it's not easy to take charge of a sinking ship and turn disappointment into a 5-0 dominance in just a few weeks.

Riza has the qualities Bulut lacked. He's got a keen eye for developing young players, he tends to stay mostly positive in his style of play, being on the front foot of every attack, and he knows England extremely well, having spent his entire career here.

It's incredible to see the same team that was once an utter shambles, transformed in such a minimal amount of time.

Riza's rise has been brilliant, and the full-time position for him is warranted.