Cardiff City is No circus

James

‘ Cardiff City FC Is No Circus ‘

The latest news stories have alluded to Cardiff City being nothing more than a circus. I however, disagree entirely. A circus has a clown and entertainers. There’s nothing remotely funny about what’s going on at Cardiff City FC. There is no clown and the only person who could be regarded as such is Simon Lim but even he has a ruthless streak and should not be underestimated. If he is to be regarded as a clown then its clearly one from one of your worst nightmares.

Cardiff City FC is no circus but more of a broken regime and ideology. The perfect idea of how things should be hasn’t quite panned out how Vincent Tan and his yes men imagined. He wouldn’t be the first dictator to find that out either. History is full of lessons on this particular way of leadership.

Some will say that dictator is a strong word or the wrong word to use but I’ll call him such quite comfortably because we were never really given a choice by him regardless of what some claim. On reflection I was wrong to judge fans because none of us had a choice so if you’re reading this then I apologise for doing such. None of us should be judging one another based on positions Tan put us in.

Tan’s u-turn in the summer of the rebranding was nothing more than an anti-backlash marketing technique to quell a rise against his ideas. Having business experience, Tan knew that the threat of pulling out would strike fear into the Cardiff City fan base and the scaremongering of ‘red and dead’ would ensure that fans would start to reluctantly back his warped vision of how the club should be.

If I had a choice then Tan would have been gone but I had no choice. Neither did the other tens of thousands of Cardiff City fans. A choice would have been Vincent Tan giving us a vote and based on the outcome continuing his business venture as he had planned even if that had meant a modernised bluebird badge for rebranding purposes.

This same guy was happy to walk out at Wembley with a blue Cardiff City scarf yet only a couple of months later professed his love of red and rebranded the club. It’s hardly surprising that a minority of fans see this as nothing more than a decision made on the whim to satisfy his own ego.

We can be at each other’s throats for the rest of our lives but it’s going to achieve nothing because our focus is not on the real threat to the club, Vincent Tan. Whilst he has continued to divide and conquer the masses to his own benefit all eyes have been off him. Fans continue to belittle and deride their own in any way possible. Fans continue to slate rival clubs or rival fan bases such as Hull City yet are reluctant to focus on the happenings at their own club.

I wasn’t Malky Mackay’s biggest fan at all but the manner in which he’s been treated lately as a scapegoat for the wrongdoings at the club is no different to what the fans have gone through previously. Everyone other than those truly to blame are being blamed. Either the fans are not chanting enough, getting behind the team or the manager has wasted millions. The blame is very rarely put on the catalysts for all of this.

These are nothing more than excuses to paper over the cracks. The focus is being shifted from these individuals in particular to others and these scapegoats are then set up to be attacked by others. Once this process takes place they’ve lost credibility, face and the character assassination is complete.

Arsenal FC were known as the Invincibles during their time of domination yet the Malaysian group at Cardiff City have become the untouchables. Simon Lim never got sacked for his alleged part in the transfers either. He was CEO of the club and according to numerous statements had a very significant part in the signing off of transfer deals. Why hasn’t he been sacked along with Mackay and Moody? I’ll leave the answer for you to work out. It’s not difficult to see a pattern emerging here.

Malky was rightfully dismissed in my opinion and I stand by that decision even now. I’m a person who loves football for the beautiful game it is and I believe Solskjær will eventually bring that, even if it means dropping down a division. What I do not agree with is the way in which Malky’s image has been run through the mill as if he’s some passenger to Cardiff City’s journey. Malky was a very important driver in us becoming a Premier League club.

Most credible managers should have been able to take us up with the backing he had but talking the talk and walking the walk are two very different things. Malky walked the walk and deserves credit for that. He will always have my credit for that whatever Tan tries to do to tarnish his reputation.

However, his image has been dragged through the mud by the current regime who wish to blame him for everything. Malky did purchase duds in the transfer window such as Cornelius and arguably Brayford who has rarely been given a chance but he also brought in Caulker and Medel. These two players have added a lot to the spine of the Cardiff City team and have been pivotal themselves in Cardiff City picking up points.

Where would we be without such players? Who else would we have bought? Looking in, realistically, we’re a small fish in a big pond and no player is going to choose us over other options in the Premier League unless serious money is put on the table. Even Crystal Palace can offer the lure of the bright lights of England’s capital which believe it or not does appeal to some players. A lot of footballers these days are in it for the lifestyle as much as they are for the money. Status and image means a lot to some people.

People continue to call Cardiff City a circus and even I did for a long time but its not. Vincent Tan is not a clown and he’s most certainly not an idiot. He’s also not someone who can learn and come around to respecting our tradition and heritage. He’s a dictator and someone who only values his own opinion. He knows how to play the media to some degree too.

He knows by acting the fool that some will believe he can be educated and thus pardon him for his lack of understanding yet the truth is he understands more than most. He just does not care. Any one of us can play dumb. It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book. If he didn’t understand and cared then he could be forgiven but he does understand but doesn’t care and therefore should be shown the same lack of respect he’s shown the Cardiff City fans.

Cardiff City FC under Vincent Tan is not a circus, never was and never will be. It’s a regime and an ideology and one that needs to be stopped. Only the fans united can stop such a regime. If the fans stay divided well then they also stay conquered.