The 4 Cardiff City players we can see leaving in January | OneFootball

Football League World looks at four players who could leave Cardiff City in the January transfer window

Cardiff City are no strangers to significant squad upheaval, and they may look to clear house somewhat when the January transfer window rolls around.

The Bluebirds sanctioned eight signings throughout the summer transfer window while plenty headed out the other way, such as Ebou Adams, Ryan Wintle and Mark McGuinness.

Cardiff's current squad is not carrying as much deadwood as it had been in previous years, although there are still a number of players who would likely benefit from seeking moves away following the turn of the year.

With that said, Football League World takes a look at five players we could see leaving Cardiff in January...

David Turnbull

Scottish midfielder David Turnbull has divided opinion among supporters ever since his £2m switch from Celtic on the final day of the 2024 winter window.

The acquisition of Turnbull certainly appeared an intriguing one at the time, with the midfielder holding strong pedigree north of the border. Across a four-year stay with Celtic, Turnbull tallied up 100 league appearances, turned out in the UEFA Champions League and scored 31 times across all competitions while winning the Scottish Premiership twice, along with four domestic cups.

However, Turnbull played just 866 minutes of football during the second-half of the 2023/24 Championship campaign and it became rather visible that he was an awkward fit under Erol Bulut, who has since been sacked.

But it is difficult to envisage just where the Scotsman slots into this side, even if Cardiff are yet to appoint a replacement for Bulut just yet. Turnbull is an attacking midfielder by trade, although Cardiff have Rubin Colwill in that position and the mercurial homegrown talent will take some displacing.

The Bluebirds have a better flow and dynamic when Colwill is on the pitch, it really is that simple. In deeper central midfield, meanwhile, Cardiff have Alex Robertson and he looks a sensational pick-up.

Signed from Manchester City in the summer, Robertson has a big future and is gracious, elegant, calm and collected while in possession. He can play on the half-turn and often looks two steps ahead of his counterparts. Bulut rarely favoured the former Pompey loan star, and that was one of his major downfalls among supporters.

Unfortunately for Turnbull, question marks remain about just how his skillset translates to the Championship. The 25-year-old clearly has class on the ball but is often found wanting off it. He does not have the athleticism to hustle and harry opponents in the middle of the park like Robertson can, while Colwill should really be one of the first names on the team sheet further ahead.

Turnbull often played with the ball infront of him in a side who are invariably dominant in a league they win almost every year, so the adaptation to the physically-toiling Championship has not been an easy process.

He missed the very start of the new season through injury but has been used sparingly when fit and now finds himself behind two of Cardiff's finest players in the pecking order.

Cardiff may well want to persist for longer in the hope of seeing their investment come good, but you could understand quite well if Turnbull did not want to be a bit-part player in the Championship. Should the situation fail to change, a parting of ways could be in the best interest of all parties.

Ryotaro Tsunoda

It is unclear just where Ryotaro Tsunoda's immediate future lies.

Cardiff signed the central defender from Yokohoma F.Marinos in January and he was immediately loaned to sister club KV Kortrijk, where he made nine impressive Belgian top-flight appearances before suffering a serious hamstring injury during a 1-0 victory over Anderlecht in March.

Tsunoda was forced to have an operation on the injury and he is yet to play since, although he should be back fit soon.

Cardiff, however, signed three central defenders during the summer window in Callum Chambers, Jesper Daland and Will Fish, while Perry Ng can also shift across when needed. That creates a real challenge for Tsunoda, who is surely behind all of those and Dimitrios Goutas in the pecking order.

The Japanese defender, who is left-footed, made a significant impression at Kortrijk with his composed ball-playing qualities and many supporters have wanted to see him receive opportunities in the Championship.

But assuming that he is back to optimal fitness in January, a loan move would surely be the best immediate course of action for his development.

Cian Ashford

Another player who could well seal a January loan exit, it was something of a surprise that Cardiff elected to keep Cian Ashford around in the summer despite signing the likes of Anwar El Ghazi and Chris Willock.

Ashford, who scored his first professional goal in a stunning 2-1 victory over Southampton last season, is a precocious talent and showed as much during the back-end of 23/24.

However, he is set to be on the fringes of the first-team this term and all parties would likely reap the rewards if he was to head out on loan in January.

The left-sided winger simply has too much potential and promise to spend a year predominantly sat on the bench, and it would likely serve as a real source of frustration to fans if that turned out to be the case.

League One would be the level, you would like to think, and it has to be something Cardiff take action on if he continues to be on the periphery.

Michael Reindorf

Michael Reindorf broadly falls under the same category as Ashford, although the calls for him to be licensed with first-team opportunities have been even louder.

The 19-year-old was an unknown quantity when Cardiff signed him from Norwich City's academy in the summer, but it did not remain that way for long. Reindorf has scored at will for Cardiff's U21 side since joining and offered a dazzling display on his professional debut against Bristol Rovers in the EFL Cup back in August.

Diligent and dogged out of possession, Reindorf is both willing and athletic enough to get stuck in and lead the press from the front, yet he marries that with breathtaking skill, confidence and courage on the ball.

He looks to be a real prospect, and it is disappointing for fans that he is yet to be handed games in the Championship.

Many supporters would argue that Reindorf is more than capable of making a meaningful impact at second-tier level, but if Cardiff are not going to provide him with the run of games to showcase that, then he must surely head out and get experience on loan.