Cardiff City Set For Nail Biting End To January Transfer Window
Just two days left before the January transfer window closes and Cardiff City fans could be set for a frantic finish...
With now just two full days to go until the close of the January transfer window, the Bluebirds are set to go down to the deadline with business still to be done.
Despite no real movement in the market for the month as a whole, Cardiff are starting to act quickly to get moves completed before the window slams shut on Wednesday evening. A number of moves are currently being worked on with the Bluebirds looking to act quickly to secure targets along with competition from other clubs.
Badou Ndiaye
At the time of writing, only Turkish based reports have stated that Cardiff are set to sign Ndiaye. The midfielder mutually agreed to part ways with his current club amid reports that he had agreed terms with the Bluebirds over a move before the deadline. Whilst this is of course a deal that can be completed, no reports from Cardiff side have confirmed or denied these claims and this saga is one to watch before the deadline in under 72 hours.
Andrej Ilic
An exciting deal for Cardiff if it can be completed, however the Bluebirds now face competition over the signing of Ilic as French giants Lille have entered the equation.
Cardiff were close to agreeing a deal to sign the striker as of Monday morning, a report from Arilas Ould-Saada who has been a fantastic source of information during the saga, stated that;
“Cardiff City are close to agreeing a transfer with Vålerenga for Serbian striker Andrej Ilic (23) after a breakthrough in negotiations between the clubs, who want to land a deal this Monday in order to have time to finalise before deadline.”
Cardiff are set to pay around £3-3.5million in guaranteed fees over installments as well as bonuses if the deal is to go through - with bonuses potentially raising the fee to around £6million.
However, some hours after the news broke, Lille launched a bid of their own in an attempt to hijack the deal. A bid that sees the club offer;
A bigger up front financial package, meaning more money in a shorter space of time.
More achievable bonus clause payments than what Cardiff are offering.
Lille’s package guarantees Vålerenga more money in a shorter time frame but NOT more overall.
However, a report from Lorenzo Lepore states that Vålerenga have rejected Lille’s offer and that Cardiff have now made some adjustments to their original offer and are now more advanced in the deal.
Lorenzo also states that negotiations with the player still need to be discussed before any move is complete. One deal to most definitely keep an eye on.
Kieffer Moore
Bournemouth striker Kieffer Moore is now set to leave the Premier League side before the deadline this week. David Ornstein of the Athletic reported that Ipswich, Sunderland and Cardiff have all made offers for the striker.
Moore is known to be open to a return to the Welsh capital and it seems as though the Bluebirds would be the favourites to sign the Welsh international. The 31 year old needs game time ahead of Wales’ potential Euro 2024 campaign should they qualify ahead of this summer's tournament.
Any movement for Moore looks like it will go down to the final day of the window and is one to keep a very close eye on for Bluebirds fans.
Nat Phillips
Liverpool are set to send Nat Phillips on loan before the closure of the January transfer window. The centre back has been heavily linked with a move to the Championship, more specifically Blackburn Rovers.
However, multiple reports have named Cardiff City as a club that hold an interest in signing Phillips on loan ahead of the second half of the campaign.
Possibly the most distant out of the three deals that are being discussed however, anything can happen in the final hours of the transfer window.