The Cardiff City wonderkid that could save the Bluebirds millions - Craig Bellamy is a huge fan | OneFootball

One emerging wonderkid at Cardiff City could save the club millions

As Cardiff City prepare for their first campaign in English football's third-tier in more than 20 years after suffering relegation at the end of the 2024/25 Championship campaign, an increased emphasis is poised to be thrust upon the emerging crop of young talent coming through in the Welsh capital.

The Bluebirds have made significant efforts to bridge what had been an insurmountable gap between the club's academy and first-team. In 2023, Cardiff cut the ribbon for a new, state-of-the-art £8 million academy training base in Llanrumney, perhaps the most notable sign of a renewed and prominent philosophy towards prioritising youth talent.

A number of players have graduated from the youth ranks in CF11 to become first-team regulars in recent years, such as Isaak Davies, Rubin Colwill and Cian Ashford.

Much will now be hoped of many others, including Joel Colwill - younger brother to Rubin, Tanatswa Nyakuhwa, Troy Perrett, Dylan Lawlor and Luey Giles.

Ronan Kpakio, however, may just be the pick of the bunch - depending on who you ask, of course.

The 18-year-old defender has been highly-rated for some time and, after briefly emerging in the senior side last season, is perhaps the single standout figure from a clutch of promising prospects poised to impact proceedings in a hopeful League One promotion push in 2025/26.

Ronan Kpakio could save Cardiff City millions in the future

Born just down the M4 in Swansea, Kpakio first joined Cardiff's academy at the age of eight and rose through the ranks with flying colours before making his professional debut in a 2-0 EFL Cup victory over then-League One side Bristol Rovers, in which he played the full 90 minutes.

Kpakio's debut came after a breakout pre-season under the watchful eye of former boss Erol Bulut, as he heaped praise on the youngster - who had not long turned 17 at the time - for a starring, two-assist performance in a 7-1 rout of Cymru Premier side Penybont.

He then started Cardiff's second-round EFL Cup tie against Southampton and kept the dangerous Sam Edozie largely quiet in yet another promising display, although first-team opportunities would arrive at a real premium afterwards.

Kpakio's next appearance came as a substitute in Cardiff's 2-0 home defeat to Sheffield United in December before featuring in the 3-2 Boxing Day loss against Oxford United, where, after being introduced on the hour mark, he set up fellow academy graduate Ashford for his side's first goal as the visiting Bluebirds briefly threatened to stage a dramatic comeback at the Kassam Stadium.

The attack-minded right-back was in action against the Blades once again in a January FA Cup clash, which Cardiff won 1-0 courtesy of another Ashford goal, but he was hauled off at half-time with what looked to be a bad injury. It proved to be exactly that - as it turned out, Kpakio had sustained ligament damage in his leg and promptly spent months on the sidelines while also undergoing surgery.

He wasn't seen again until Cardiff's final day trip to Norwich City, where he made his first league start by playing 69 minutes of the eventual 4-2 defeat.

However, Kpakio's time on the treatment table has rightly done precious little to lull the promise and excitement surrounding the teenager.

It will be hoped that frequent first-team opportunities are available for Kpakio in League One next term.

Cardiff are rather short-staffed in the right-back berth at this moment and you would imagine he will be directly competing for a starting spot with Perry Ng following Andy Rinomhota's departure at the end of his contract last month, while the recent appointment of former Manchester City Elite Development Squad lead Brian Barry-Murphy as head coach will naturally see an influx of youngsters in the first-team frame.

Kpakio, as many Cardiff fans will attest to, is capable of holding his own in the third-tier next season, although the bigger picture is more exciting and he's exactly the type of player who could save the club millions further down the line.

Should the talented defender develop according to expectation, Cardiff may not need to splash the cash on another right-back for some time - and he himself could make the club some rather handsome cash, too.

Craig Bellamy is a huge fan of Cardiff City's Ronan Kpakio

Cardiff fans were reminded of Kpakio's promise at the end of May, when, in a stunning and unprecedented twist, Craig Bellamy decided to name the Welsh youth international in Wales' senior squad for June's World Cup qualification double-header against Liechtenstein and Belgium.

Kpakio turned heads during Wales' training camp in Spain and Wales head coach Bellamy, who formerly coached at Cardiff's academy, was lavish in his praise of the 18-year-old.

Bellamy lauded Kpakio's "ridiculously high" potential and revealed that he even tried to sign Kpakio for Burnley during his time as Vincent Kompany's assistant at Turf Moor. He also added that, had it not been for the aforementioned ligament injury, Kpakio would have earned a first senior call-up back in March for Wales' fixtures against Kazakhstan and North Macedonia.

"I've known Ronan since he was very, very young, I've kept an eye on him," Bellamy said after calling Kpakio up to the senior Wales squad.

"Even last year we wanted to buy him for Burnley, so I'm fully aware, I've watched him - especially over the last couple of years, his progression has been outstanding.

"His potential can be ridiculously high; he's very athletic, very intelligent.

"If he wasn't injured I would have had him in March, as he's a player, especially in the right-back position... where we don't have a big area [of selection choices] in there, so we really need to start developing players in that position.

"He's the perfect profile for that."

Kpakio is still awaiting his senior international debut, although he was named on the bench for Wales' 4-3 defeat away to Belgium.

That debut, mind you, surely isn't too far away given just how highly he's rated by Bellamy, who will only be more inclined to kick-start Kpakio's senior international career if he establishes himself as a regular at Cardiff in 25/26.

As for the Bluebirds, Bellamy's praise only further reaffirmed Kpakio's undoubted talent and potential, which could really begin to blossom on a consistent, impactful basis next time around and beyond.