Fresh twist emerges in Cardiff City, Nathan Jones saga as Charlton Athletic exit threat remains | OneFootball

According to reports, Cardiff City remain strongly interested in Nathan Jones after seeing numerous approaches rejected for the Charlton Athletic boss

Cardiff City are not prepared to call it quits on their protracted pursuit of Charlton Athletic boss Nathan Jones quite just yet in yet another sudden twist in the saga.

This latest development has been reported via X by Darren Witcoop, who has claimed that Cardiff have not given up on their pursuit of the 52-year-old after expressing a strong interest over the last week.

Jones has been heavily linked with the vacant managerial hotseat in the Welsh capital as Cardiff prepare to appoint their seventh permanent boss in just over four years following relegation to League One at the end of the 2024/25 Championship campaign, having parted ways with Omer Riza back in April.

The Bluebirds' managerial search has already entered its sixth week, and a number of names have been in contention to become Vincent Tan's latest hire. Last month, Football League World exclusively revealed that Ian Evatt and Des Buckingham were both undertaking interviews for the job, while less-experienced profiles in Leicester City coach Brian Barry-Murphy and Aaron Ramsey - who led the side on a three-match caretaker basis after Riza's sacking but is eager to continue his playing career and represent Wales at next year's FIFA World Cup 2026 - are also reportedly under consideration.

Jones' name, however, has been in the headlines in recent times after it emerged over the weekend that he was a "strong and late contender" to succeed Riza at the Cardiff City Stadium. Jones, a boyhood Bluebirds supporter who has previously admitted how he would struggle to turn down the opportunity to come home and manage Cardiff, remains under contract for three more years at Charlton after taking them back to the Championship through the League One play-offs.

An update from journalist Rich Cawley earlier this week all-but ruled out any potential move back to South Wales for Jones, although it now appears that Cardiff are not ready to give up on their pursuit of the Welshman in a fresh twist.

Cardiff City remain interested in Charlton Athletic boss Nathan Jones

As reported by Witcoop on Thursday morning, Cardiff have not given up just yet and have lodged a number of unsuccessful approaches for Jones, who is described as the club's number one target.

Cardiff's advances have unsurprisingly been rejected by the Addicks, who are keen to go into the Championship under the stewardship of the former Luton Town boss.

They are able to play hardball when dealing with approaches due to the length of Jones' contract and the fact that his deal does not contain a fixed release clause, which, as Witcoop has suggested, allows Charlton to go "as high as they want".

Witcoop has also suggested Charlton are "insistent" that Jones isn't leaving.

The South London outfit are helped, of course, by essentially trading divisions with the Bluebirds, who will be playing third-tier football for the first time in more than 20 years come August, while Charlton are preparing for life back in the Championship after a five-year exile.

However, Jones' own stance could be one to watch in the coming days and weeks. His allegiances to Cardiff are no secret, and Witcoop has claimed that the outcome could potentially be decided by whether Jones forces through a move, stating that the 52-year-old is "allowing" the saga to play out between the two clubs.

Cardiff City need to appoint a manager soon amid fresh Nathan Jones update

Jones is quite clearly the chief target among the Bluebirds' key decision-makers, and, rightly or wrongly, controversial owner Tan appears set on fighting tooth and nail to land his man at the expense of a swifter appointment by pursuing other available candidates currently out of work, such as Buckingham and Evatt.

Whether that's the right stance to take, of course, is open for debate, but even though many supporters would warmly welcome the appointment of Jones, the fanbase are collectively becoming increasingly disgruntled at how the saga is unfolding and the general length of time it is taking for Cardiff to appoint a new manager.

One way or another, fans are desperate for the right manager to come in to help Cardiff prepare in earnest for what is hoped to be a significant rebuilding process and set the gears in motion for a promotion push next season. By failing to appoint a manager just yet, the Bluebirds are allowing their divisional rivals a real headstart in preparation, and they cannot afford to lose too much more ground.

You do get the impression that Cardiff's protracted pursuit of Jones threatens to prove counterproductive.

Face will be saved if a deal can be brokered, but it does feel like Cardiff are in an 'all-or-nothing' stage now and will find themselves in a precarious position, should they fail to bring Jones to the dugout in rather swift fashion.