Cardiff City manager search news: Vitor Campelos hint, Brian Barry-Murphy claim, Timeline revealed | OneFootball

Football League World rounds up the latest news surrounding Cardiff City's ongoing managerial search

Cardiff City's search for a permanent successor to Omer Riza after suffering relegation to League One is rumbling on, with supporters desperate for an imminent appointment to set the gears in motion for a significant summer and, it will be hoped, a promotion push in the 2025/26 campaign.

Returning to the second-tier at the very first time of asking is of paramount importance to Cardiff, who will be playing below the Championship for the first time in more than 20 years come August.

It was a disastrous campaign in the Welsh capital as Cardiff swept through three managers - namely Erol Bulut, Riza and Aaron Ramsey on an interim basis - en-route to relegation, and implementing a sense of stability in the dugout now feels, perhaps more pertinently than ever before, a real non-negotiable given that the Bluebirds have had no less than seven permanent bosses in situ since the start of 2021.

A number of names have been linked to the vacancy and Cardiff have created a subcommittee including ex-Swansea City sporting director Mark Allen and a representative of the globally-renowned Wasserman agency to run the rule over potential candidates. Last week, Football League World exclusively revealed that Ian Evatt and Des Buckingham, who both have experience operating at the top-end of League One with Bolton Wanderers and Oxford United respectively, are in contention.

But what is the latest news involving the Bluebirds' managerial search? FLW takes a closer look...

Vitor Campelos hint emerges

A new name has potentially been thrown into the running as Cardiff edge ever closer to appointing their next permanent boss.

Portuguese manager Vitor Campelos reportedly held talks with Cardiff back in the summer of 2023 before the club opted for a different overseas appointment in Bulut, but could now be back in contention nearly two years on.

Campelos was with Chaves at the time, and has since had two subsequent jobs in the Portuguese top-flight with Gil Vincente and AVS Futebol SAD, departing the latter in November.

A recent update on X by Football Insider's Pete O'Rourke has claimed that Campelos is on the radar of a number of English clubs and is keen on a move to the country this summer.

That report has been followed up by a teasing suggestion from former WalesOnline journalist Paul Abbandonato, who also took to X to hint that Campelos may just be in the running to take over in the Welsh capital.

The news surrounding Campelos has seemingly emerged out of nowhere, and when that happens, developments can tend to move rather quickly, meaning this saga is most definitely one to watch.

Timeline offered on Cardiff City's next managerial appointment

A report published yesterday by WalesOnline's Bluebirds correspondent, Glen Williams, meanwhile, has claimed that Cardiff are set to announce their new manager in the coming days.

It's said that the club's hierarchy have been hoping to finalise the decision by the end of May, having interviewed a host of candidates.

As per the report, a decision is expected to be communicated to supporters this week. The push for a new manager is clearly moving quickly and is now at its final stage, and it does appear as though we can expect a serious breakthrough in the next day or two, or potentially over the weekend.

Brian Barry-Murphy is a "leading contender" for the Cardiff City job

Another name certainly worth watching over the coming days is Brian Barry-Murphy, who has been described as a "top contender" for the job by Darren Witcoop.

Witcoop's update emerged via his X account last Saturday, and while there have been no fresh developments since, Barry-Murphy will soon be out of work. That's because Ruud van Nistelrooy is set to depart Leicester City imminently following the end of the Premier League season, and with Barry-Murphy being a member of the Dutchman's first-team coaching staff, he too will be leaving the King Power Stadium.

It will be interesting to see whether Cardiff's pursuit of Barry-Murphy accelerates once Leicester officially part ways with van Nistelrooy.

Barry-Murphy was previously linked with the Cardiff job back in 2021 and has developed a healthy reputation in the game. His only senior managerial experience came in a two-year stint with Rochdale between 2019 and 2021, but he spent three years in charge of Manchester City's Elite Development Squad before leaving his position last summer.

The 46-year-old would tick many boxes for supporters. His modern and sustainable possession-based style means he may represent the type of progressive appointment that the overwhelming majority of fans are hoping for, while the Irishman's experience coaching and cultivating elite talent such as Liam Delap, Chelsea superstar Cole Palmer, Romeo Lavia, James McAtee, Oscar Bobb and Nico O'Reilly - along with talented Bluebirds midfielder Alex Robertson - could make him an ideal fit considering the wealth of exciting prospects currently on the books at Cardiff.