Cardiff City may be watching Russell Martin developments closely amid Rubin Colwill transfer reveal | OneFootball

Russell Martin has spoken glowingly about Cardiff's Rubin Colwill; he will surely be a transfer target when Martin gets back into work.

Cardiff City will be keeping an eye on the movements of the former Southampton manager Russell Martin this summer following previous comments that Martin has made regarding playmaker Rubin Colwill.

Martin is expected to be in much demand this summer, with reported interest from both Rangers and Leicester City. And this could have knock-on effects for the Bluebirds, who will be starting next season in League One following a disastrous 2024/25 season which saw them finish bottom of the Championship.

The ex-Swansea City boss is a known admirer of Colwill, and Cardiff supporters have long feared Martin taking the maverick playmaker away from the Welsh capital. Exactly where Martin next ends up, then, could be worth monitoring for those of a Bluebirds persuasion amid a transfer reveal involving Colwill.

Football Insider's Pete O'Rourke recently revealed interest in the attacking midfielder from a number of unnamed Championship clubs ahead of a potential move this summer.

Russell Martin is a known admirer of Cardiff City's Rubin Colwill

Martin spoke glowingly about Rubin Colwill after his Southampton team beat Cardiff 5-3 in a Carabao Cup match at the end of August, describing him as "a really talented player" and admitting that Colwill is "a player I've liked for a long time".

During that match, of course, Colwill made the headlines for scoring an audacious long-range effort, and his all-round display enthused Martin.

After the game, Martin said of Colwill, via BBC Sport Wales: "Their [Cardiff's] first goal is a moment of brilliance from a player I've liked for a long time. He is a really talented player.

"I think he needs to become a really good Championship player first [before thinking about the Premier League]. He hasn't played enough games and he needs to get himself in the Cardiff team regularly.

"But I watched a lot of him for Wales under-21s when I was [at Swansea], I watched most of the Wales under-21s and first-team games. I used to bump into his dad all the time while travelling and we used to have a chat.

"I'm not his manager, so I don't see him day to day, but he has to make sure he becomes the first name on the team sheet for Cardiff because he has moments like tonight and I've seen him have a few moments over the last couple of years that a lot of players just don't possess. Really special.

"But he has to make sure he can use that special talent by being on the pitch more than he is now. I hope I haven't spoken out of turn, but that would be my assessment."

He's not the only one. Then-Cardiff manager Erol Bulut admitted at the end of the 2023/24 season that Colwill was "the target of many Premier League clubs", and interest in the 23-year-old Welsh international will doubtless have been piqued by Cardiff's relegation this season.

Cardiff are currently managerless and facing the need for an extensive rebuild over the summer months.

Leaving Cardiff may be the best thing for Rubin Colwill's career

There are good reasons why Colwill might want to leave Cardiff, despite having been with the club since joining their academy when he was 8 years old and having been a first team player for five seasons.

Moving down a division with the club would be a backward step at a crucial time in his career, and with Capology estimating his current wage at a relatively modest £7,500 a week, he could be in line for a significant pay rise should he leave.

In addition to this, he is also a full Welsh international, with nine caps and one goal to his name. But maintaining a place in the squad will become tougher, the lower the level is at which he's playing.

Colwill was picked by former Wales manager Rob Page for their Euro 2020 squad despite never having made an appearance for the team at the time. He subsequently made his debut for them in a tournament warm-up friendly against France and was also selected for their 2022 World Cup squad.

But things are somewhat different now. Speaking in March after leaving Colwill out of the Wales squad for their Nations League double-header against Kazakhstan and North Macedonia, Page's successor, Craig Bellamy, said: "He's got to be playing, week-in, week-out, for his club. I feel for him. But he'll take care of himself and he’ll be fine. He’s fine. He’s just not in these numbers, for this squad."

At that time, Colwill had played the full 90 minutes of Cardiff's previous match against Sunderland, but this was only the second full 90 minutes that he'd played for the club since Boxing Day.

Since he has two years left on his contract, Colwill would command a transfer fee as clubs circle for his signature.