Fresh claim made on potential Colwill, Kpakio exits at Cardiff City - 'If I'm being brutally honest' | OneFootball

Football League World's resident Cardiff City fan pundit has discussed potential sales in the January transfer window

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 will be intending to avoid losing any prized assets as we edge closer to the January transfer window, with the Bluebirds bidding for a return to the Championship from League One at the very first time of asking come May.

The Bluebirds enjoyed a formidable start to life in English football's third tier by beginning the campaign with an eight-match unbeaten run, although the stop-start nature of the season owing to international breaks and various cup competitions, coupled with the natural trials and tribulations that come with having what is a young, inexperienced and streamlined squad, in spite of its talent, has resulted in a slump in momentum, form and performances across recent weeks.

Cardiff have failed to win more than two consecutive league fixtures since August, and while Brian Barry-Murphy's side have progressed all the way to an EFL Cup quarter-final tie against Premier League heavyweights Chelsea after knocking out both Burnley and Welsh rivals Wrexham, consistent divisional form has been an issue and the Bluebirds are positioned in fifth-place ahead of this weekend's return to action away at Northampton Town.

This has, of course, emphasised the need for further incomings in January, with Barry-Murphy having added just three recruits to his squad over the summer in the form of Nathan Trott, Gabriel Osho and Chelsea loanee Omari Kellyman. Cardiff allowed a litany of ageing players out the door and adopted a bullish stance during the summer window, which saw the likes of Cian Ashford, Rubin Colwill, Ronan Kpakio, Dylan Lawlor and Alex Robertson retained for a League One promotion push amid a flurry of reported interest from Championship clubs and, in some cases, top-flight suitors too.

Colwill, Kpakio and Lawlor have been among Cardiff's most impressive performers this season. Having been named as vice-captain by Barry-Murphy ahead of the season's inception, Colwill has flourished alongside younger brother Joel, establishing himself as one of the finest operators at this level and playing with a sense of liberation, license and consistency.

Teenage pair Kpakio and Lawlor, meanwhile, have both transitioned into key players in their first campaigns of regular senior football, receiving call-ups to Craig Bellamy's Wales squad as a result — and Cardiff will be glad to have security over their futures by tying the duo down to new contracts earlier this season.

Cardiff City exit fear involving Rubin Colwill and Ronan Kpakio played down

Cardiff's youngsters have made a name for themselves this season, and while the Bluebirds are continuing to reap the rewards from increased faith, strategy and a blossoming academy set-up, the fear of those assets being prized away is natural. It's a reality that Cardiff will one day have to accept - should the likes of Kpakio and Lawlor in particular fulfil their sky-high potential, of course - but Football League World's resident City fan pundit, Matt Hall, is not worrying just yet.

FLW asked Matt whether he holds any worries about stars such as Colwill, Kpakio and Lawlor leaving the club in January, alongside star striker Yousef Salech.

Interest in the quartet, as with other members of Barry-Murphy's young and talented squad, would come as no surprise, although Matt is not expecting any such departures.

Matt, in his own words, does not have any concerns at this moment in time, in spite of Cardiff's drop-off in form. He believes that the fact many of Cardiff's best players are academy products who grew up supporting the club means that they are well-placed to retain assets for the years to come, instead predicting the Bluebirds to invest heavily into bringing new players in through the door following the turn of the year.

"I don't have any concerns, if I'm being brutally honest," Matt told FLW.

"Obviously the slump in form, potentially you could call it, I think it's just a natural dip that we're going to have. We've won one, lost one, won one and lost one for the last few weeks, there are extenuating factors towards that.

"I think a lot of the players (Rubin Colwill, Dylan Lawlor, Ronan Kpakio) are getting called up to Wales squads and what's interfering with our season is all these international breaks and them leaving the club.

"I don't have any concerns about them leaving. If anything, I think what we'll be doing is looking to invest and massively strengthen what we've already got rather than going the other way.

"I don't think it would make any sense financially for us to do that now. There isn't anybody on a short-term contract anymore, unless you're getting a ridiculous premium on any of those players, then I don't see us losing any of them or any of them putting in requests to leave or anything of that nature.

"I think you get a different type of player in our academy, because we are the capital city, we are a one-club city. Everyone who comes through here is a Cardiff fan, you maybe don't get the same in London academies where everyone supports various teams.

"There is very much a Welsh strength in that, and I just don't see them walking out on their hometown club unless it's a few years down the line for a very big jump in the pyramid."

Cardiff City need promotion in 2026 to retain prized assets

January may indeed represent a premature time for Cardiff's glut of young and exciting homegrown stars to consider departing the Welsh capital, although the Bluebirds will be more conscious of that reality if Barry-Murphy fails to get this side back to the Championship at the first attempt.

A second season in League One may not appeal to players who have, or will be expected to receive, interest from the higher echelons of the Championship and even the Premier League.

Cardiff, of course, do not need to worry about that quite just yet. For now, the intention remains to focus on the job at hand and clinch promotion, of which the likes of Colwill, Kpakio, Lawlor and the aforementioned Salech could all play starring roles, but the question of whether Cardiff can retain such talents will be a much more pertinent one if they're not competing back in the second-tier come the following campaign.