Ryan Wintle return and potential Kieffer Moore and Joel Bagan departues? The latest Cardiff City transfer talking points | OneFootball

Cardiff City are showing signs that they’re up for the fight under new head coach Steve Morison after three victories in their last four matches.

There has been a marked improvement since the ex-Leeds and Millwall striker took over from Mick McCarthy in the dugout – initially on a temporary basis before landing the job full-time.

Wins over Huddersfield, Preston North End and Luton Town in November has put the Bluebirds in a better position than they were and with the month of January looming, that means Morison can hopefully freshen up his squad with new players, budget-depending.

Let’s look at some of the transfer talking points that may occur in the Welsh capital next month once the transfer window indeed re-opens.

Wintle recall?

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One of Cardiff’s summer signings saw Ryan Wintle brought in on a free transfer from Crewe Alexandra to add to the Bluebirds’ midfield options.

However before the summer window was closed, the 24-year-old was headed back north as Blackpool decided to take him on loan for the season.

Wintle has missed just two league games for the Seasiders and when he’s started he’s been a key player under Neil Critchley, and with Morison’s desire to start more younger players there’s the chance that Cardiff could use their recall clause to bring Wintle back to the club in January.

Whether that happens remains to be seen but Wintle could add a bit more steadiness to the engine room for the second half of the season if that decision is made.

There was expected to be a mountain of interest in Kieffer Moore over the summer following his performances for Wales at Euro 2020 – not to mention his 20 goals for Cardiff in 2020-21.

But in somewhat of a surprise it was only really Wolves who made a play for the big target man, and it was very late on in the window when that happened and it was an offer that didn’t meet Cardiff’s £10 million-plus valuation.

Moore has had a quiet campaign when you compare it to last season’s exploits, scoring just four times in 19 outings, but he possesses qualities which make you believe that Premier League sides who need another option in the second half of the season will take a punt on him.

Morison replacing McCarthy in the dugout has seen a slight change of system and personnel, with Wolves loanee Ryan Giles being used as a wing-back instead of further forward in a front three.

Joel Bagan played in that wing-back spot under McCarthy for the most part but he’s missed several recent games with a shoulder injury, making his return to action this week with the under-23 squad.

But if Morison’s words are to be taken seriously then Bagan may find himself out on loan in the second half of the season as the head coach is not particularly convinced that he is ready for regular second tier football.

A League One move could do Bagan good and there should be a lot of interest should he end up on the loan list.