Cardiff City set to action action over 21-year-old's immediate future | OneFootball

Roko Simic could be heading back to Cardiff City next month

Cardiff City and KV Kortrijk are discussing a premature recall for Roko Simic, who was signed for the Championship club in the summer but has struggled following a loan switch to Belgium.

That's according to Kortrijk boss Freyr Alexandersson, who has outlined a fresh injury setback for the young striker and talked up the possibility of his loan being cut short in January - as quoted by WalesOnline.

Simic signed for Cardiff late in the window as something of a left-field buy for the Welsh outfit. The 20-year-old frontman joined Cardiff on a four-year deal after a reported £1.7 million deal was struck with Red Bull Salzburg, but despite the side's goalscoring struggles, he instantly headed over to KV Kortrijk, who are a part of Vincent Tan's business empire and had Isaak Davies, Sheyi Ojo and Ryotaro Tsunoda all on loan last term.

It was hoped that Simic would emulate Davies' progression in Belgium and return to Cardiff a more refined player ready to lead the line in the 2025/26 campaign. Academy product Davies scored 12 goals last season for the Belgian top-flight strugglers and Simic was poised to enjoy a similar impact, although the move has proved a disaster for all involved and a recall now appears the most likely course of action heading into the January transfer window.

Cardiff City may recall Roko Simic from nightmare KV Kortrijk spell

Cardiff are believed to intend on having Simic as their starting striker next season, so action will doubtless need to be taken on Simic's immediate future. That could well come in the form of a recall, which would likely benefit all parties given how the move has played out, and Alexandersson revealed that those discussions are taking place after being quizzed on the matter.

The Icelandic boss said: "They are speaking about it, I don't know how it will go. Depending on how long this is... it's a very strange injury to be honest. It's very complex and they are working on it constantly.

"He will definitely be out until January, that's for sure. It could even be longer. We need to have constant communication."

When asked about the hype which initially surrounded the signing, Alexandersson added: "Yeah, and then you get nothing. It's not his fault. It's not worked out and we would have loved to have had it another way."

Roko Simic's loan spell with KV Kortrijk from Cardiff City

Simic, who built up an impressive reputation for Salzburg and even opened his UEFA Champions League account in 23/24, appeared the ideal striker to help Kortrijk away from the wrong end of the table, as they struggled and narrowly avoided the drop last time out.

Given how well Davies fared there, it felt as though the deal would pay dividends for the Bluebirds in the long-term, too.

But Kortrijk have continued to struggle and are battling against relegation once again, while Simic has had little involvement in proceedings. The Croatia youth international has made just four appearances, starting only one of those, and is yet to score for Kortrijk.

He's been absent for the last month with an undisclosed injury, which could keep him out of action beyond January. Nonetheless, it appears increasingly likely that Simic has already played his last match for Kortrijk.