Cardiff City legend tells club what to do with rising star as transfer debate put to bed
Cardiff City legend Nathan Blake has told the club to bin the idea of allowing Cian Ashford to leave on loan this month, with former Bluebirds midfielder Joe Ledley believing the winger has the spark the team has been missing this season.
Cardiff beat promotion-contenders Sheffield United 1-0 in the FA Cup third round on Thursday night thanks to a magnificent solo effort from Ashford, who was a clear standout for the visitors at Bramall Lane.
The 20-year-old Rhondda product has shown just what he is capable of over the last few weeks, with the winner against the Blades his fourth goal involvement in his last five games. In a squad which has a dearth of high-contributing forwards, those are impressive numbers.
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Manager Omer Riza admitted ahead of the January transfer window that Ashford was one player who was under consideration for a loan spell away from the club this month. However, given his recent performances, that debate has surely been put to bed.
"There was talk of him going out on loan, but I think he is a very good player," Blake said on commentary before the opener.
"He is at Championship level for me, so I'm not sure why the talk was for him to go out on loan for him to develop further. He is in a position where he should be looking to hold down a place at first-team level at Cardiff."
After his goal, Blake added: "Every time I've seen him play for Cardiff - this season and last season - he has looked dangerous. He works incredibly hard and has got good quality.
"I think he can play in that central eight position as well. He has so much energy box to box and under pressure he is very cool."
And former Cardiff star Ledley added his voice to the Ashford praise, too. While on punditry duty, Ledley said: "He has been Cardiff's best player since he's come back into the team against Oxford United. He's taken his opportunities fantastically.
"He has been the spark for Cardiff. This is what the club is about, bringing the youth through, Colwill and Ashford have been magnificent. They have caused Sheffield United lots of problems.
"He got his goal at Oxford, he was amazing at Watford away, he is contributing to the team, assists and goals, that's what you need from your wide players. We have talked about Cardiff needing to invest in the final third, but he has been magnificent."
Ashford has had to be patient this season. After breaking through properly at the end of the last campaign, he's been in and out of the squad for the first half of this term. Sign up to our daily Cardiff City newsletter here.
Now, though, he is quickly becoming one of the first names on the team sheet and club captain Joe Ralls believes the Wales youth international is now showing what he has threatened to do for a number of years.
"Cian has been brilliant," said Ralls, who made his 400th appearance for the Bluebirds at Bramall Lane.
"I'm really happy for him, because he's a great lad and he's got so much ability. He had a little spell out of the team, and I think sometimes you need that as a young player, to work on your game and work hard in training. He's done that, taken his opportunity, he's been brilliant for us in the league and he's shown his quality again today."
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Riza still has a decision to make, of course. He has suggested that as many as four players could leave this month - with Ryotaro Tsunoda having been loaned to KV Kortrijk - to make way for much-needed new signings.
However, Ashford has almost taken the decision out of the manager's hands with his performances of late and is now beginning to look like a very important player for the Bluebirds as they look to climb out of relegation trouble.
“Cian is excellent," Riza said after the match. "He listens, he learns and he wants to do well. I’ve said since the start of the season that he has a lot of potential and we believe in him. His performances have been key to some of our results. I’m delighted for him."
