"Talent is clear for all to see" - "£10m" Cardiff City man tipped to garner January transfer interest | OneFootball

FLW has been speaking to our Cardiff City fan pundit to discuss which Bluebirds player is the most likely to garner transfer interest come January.

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...

Cardiff City have suffered a dismal start to their 2024/25 Championship season, with just one win from their opening eight matches resulting in manager Erol Bulut being dismissed in late September.

The Bluebirds sit rock-bottom of the Championship after eight games, with just four points from a possible 24.

That's despite having a seemingly strong summer transfer window, which saw the arrivals of players such as Jesper Daland, Anwar El-Ghazi and Calum Chambers.

But, if caretaker boss Omer Riza's side can't improve between now and the opening of the January transfer window, clubs may well start eyeing up some of his star players to steal them away from the Cardiff City Stadium.

Cardiff City: Rubin Colwill identified as potential January transfer target for clubs

In any side that is struggling at the bottom of the table, teams both above and perhaps from the league below will be sniffing around to see if they can strike a deal for a wantaway star.

We asked our Cardiff City fan pundit, Jack Price, which one particular player can be expected to garner interest in the January transfer window, what sort of price-tag might be placed on that player and what level of club could be interested.

Price said: "The Cardiff player I could see garnering the highest volume of interest in the next window simply has to be Rubin Colwill, and I think you'd be hard-pressed to find too many supporters who think differently to that as well.

"His talent is clear for all to see. Standing at 6'5", his profile is pretty unique really. Despite being of that frame, he can dance past defenders at ease, and with a real elegance and swagger to his game.

"For me, the best players often look effortless, and Colwill has incredible natural ability. Everything comes naturally to him when he's playing at his best, and I think I could see some Premier League clubs looking to tap into his potential and profile.

"He only started 18 league games across the previous two seasons, obviously excluding the current one where I believe he's started four of the opening eight. And there is context to that.

"He has had real injury setbacks brought on by a rapid growth spurt, and then you look at last season, where Erol Bulut simply did not fancy him a lot.

"That went into this season, and that in of itself was a big reason why the Turk quickly lost the faith of many supporters - myself included.

"I think it is telling though, that when supporters of other clubs are also asking why Colwill hasn't started more often.

"At his best, he completely dictates our attacking tempo and rhythm, grabs games by the scruff of the neck, and is at the heartbeat of our forward play, driving forward at will, drifting past opponents and breaking defensive lines."

Colwill could be tough to keep hold of if Cardiff don't improve

At just 22, Colwill is likely a considerable distance from reaching his ceiling as a player, and yet despite that, he's already played well in excess of 100 games for Cardiff, and has represented Wales numerous times too.

Comfortable operating as a number 10, a winger and even as a centre-forward, the young attacker has showcased a highly impressive amount of ability to be a versatile weapon at such a young age.

"He is a real talent. I can't emphasize that enough."Price said.

"He's publicly praised him more than once, most notably after his wondergoal against the Saints in the League Cup in August. In terms of us selling Colwill, I think the little drawback is that, at face value, he doesn't have an array of goals and assists.

"I do think that could harness our ability to drive the highest asking price possible. If you look at some of the players who have been sold from the Championship for massive fees, the two I can think of most recently are Summerville and Rutter at Leeds, they obviously had outstanding seasons in the way of goals and assists.

"They went for fees in excess of £20m. I don't think we'd get that for Colwill. But, I do think top-five recruitment teams will be in no doubt of his talent, I could easily see Colwill being of interest in January if he has a strong run of form across the winter break.

"Maybe he bumps up his goals and assists tally a little bit. In terms of a price-tag, I'd personally be demanding in excess of £10m. Whether that would be acceptable is a different story.

"But, from a Cardiff perspective, he is indispensable if we want any sort of success this season. He's a top-draw talent, and he's got a glittering career ahead of him if the right parts fall into place.

"I could definitely see him having a Premier League career, and I think that's the level of clubs who would be interested. I really do think we should be looking to keep hold of Colwill at all costs, but if there was interest, I'd expect it to come from the top-flight."

The Bluebirds not only need to see a turn in results and performances soon for the sake of their Championship mortality, but also if they want to feel confident that they can fend off interest in their star attacker.