Well, another season is in the books, and another season in the Championship awaits us next year, thankfully much more closer for comfort this time with a commendable mid-table finish coming off the heels of a transfer embargo and a dependency on loans. Our performances definitely reflect our final position, with some major ups and downs throughout the season.
To give a sense of where we should be going from here on forward, I though a player rankings list would be a good way to process my thoughts. Of course, there will be indubitably be disagreements, and that's fine, but I just felt like sharing my personal thoughts about the individual performances throughout the entire season. I'll be sticking to a 5 appearances minimum role, so a few players will miss out (lol Jack Simpson), because I don't feel there's enough there to judge them off of.
Without further ado, here are my player ratings.
Goalkeepers:
Alnwick: I actually think Alnwick could be considered a sleeper candidate for player of the year, and the main reason he isn't is due to his phasing out for Horvath in the second half of the season. Plenty of excellent and dedicated performances that saved us points in some games and prevented embarrassing losses in others. Felt a bit bad when Horvath took his starting role, but he absolutely stepped up and gave his best for the club. 8/10
Runarsson: Conversely, I think Runarsson was simply not good enough at this level. There were absolutely a few examples where points and games were lost due to a poor performance, and he didn't do enough to show any quality over Alnwick. Whilst not horrifically awful, and many of the goals were ones I wouldn't expect anyone to save, he absolutely left a lot to be desired. 4/10.
Horvath: Horvath is perhaps our best piece of business this season. A goalkeeper who has proven his quality in the Championship by being on promotion winning sides twice now, it was a bit much to ask for a threepeat, Horvath absolutely delivered and gave us some wonderful saves and very few genuinely poor performances. If Alnwick can be retained for next season, I have the utmost faith in our keepers next season. 8/10
Defenders:
McGuinness: McGuinness has always been a dependable force in a Cardiff shirt, and this season was no exception. Some standout performances, particularly against the Jacks at home, at the Stadium of Light, and both games against Watford. Conversely, very few games where he could be considered less than average. The injury was unfortunate, but hopefully will not kill his momentum when he returns, hopefully for us. 7/10
Wilson-Esbrand: An exciting young player from Manchester City who tended to play more of an offensive wing position rather than a wing-back role and a great ability to hold the ball. Plenty of room for him to grow as a player and showed a lot of potential in spurts. Would not be opposed to getting on a permanent and need to see more of him. 6/10
Ng: The official player of the season for the team, and it's not hard to see why. A solid defensive presence combined with an outstanding offensive presence that even many Premier League level teams would be envious of, and likely makes him a wanted man. A joint top goalscorer and joint second in assists, Ng has established himself as perhaps the best right-back in the league alongside Southampton's Walker-Peters. The rating isn't higher only because there were occasional issues with consistency regarding defensive work. 8/10 and POTS
Philips: Philips has won a lot of fans over in his short time here, and he's demonstrated a good work ethic and some excellent defensive plays. Whilst not every game has been wonderful (Hull comes to mind), he's successfully shut down a lot of goal scoring opportunities single-handedly. Seriously worth the consideration for a permanent deal if the price is right. 7/10
Goutas: Goutas was a bit of an enigma when arriving here last summer, but has shown relative consistency as a starting centre-back throughout the entire season with a sturdy tackle. Whilst perhaps not as work-rate heavy as McGuinness and Philips, Goutas has made up for it with an excellent ability to secure goals through aerial set-pieces with his head, securing us much needed points. A good hand instrumental in some very important moments. 7/10
Panzo: I honestly forgot this guy even played for us. Came in with a fair degree of fanfare, but between Goutas and McGuinness being pretty much unreplaceable for the first half of the season, and poor performances when he did appear, it was absolutely the best decision to give him back to Forest. Very underwhelming, but a lot of it wasn't his fault to be fair. 3/10
Romeo: Romeo, oh Romeo! Being a backup defender is never fun, but when given the opportunity, he sadly couldn't deliver and got bullied perpetually by wingers throughout the season. To be fair, this is somewhat expected of a backup defender, and not every performance was necessarily bad, but he left very little impression despite low expectations and probably should be moved on. 4/10
Collins: Collins is a very interesting player to talk about. Having sat in the Grandstand for a few games this season, I got to see Collins up close and I can definitely notice he puts in the effort and does whatever he can to be an attacking and defensive presence. But on top of living within Ng's shadow, Collins sadly, from a pure skill perspective, falls a little short for Championship level. The effort is commendable, however, but maybe not a starter for next season. 5/10
Midfielders:
Wintle: I really don't know what to make of Wintle. There are some games where he's outstanding and he absolutely makes a difference, and has even won us points on more than one occasion. There are other times where he's less than a non-factor and actively dragging the team down. I think, ultimately, we need someone more consistent ala Ralls. Moments of greatness, but not enough to offset the bad. 5/10
Turnbull: Cardiff's biggest signing this January, Turnbull left after a strong spell at Celtic, but so far, has yet to really live up to the expectations on the whole. I don't think this is through a lack of working hard, but I think Colwill holding his preferred position as attacking midfielder has impacted this somewhat. It's definitely too early to judge Turnbull as either a success or a failure though. Next season will be the real test. 5/10
Siopis: For the first half of the season, Siopis was an absolute monster, a Terminator with an outstanding, tireless work-rate that did everything to shut down attacks, a surefire POTS performance. But then, things fell off. Not to a horrific degree, and you get the sense he was always trying, but for some reason, the stamina and defensive presence wasn't quite the same. But this was a positive first season for the Greek veteran in the club. 7/10
O'Dowda: A stunning start to the season was cruelly stalled by a long-term injury that left him out for months. When he returned, he certainly showed quality in his substitute appearances, but wasn't really given enough starts afterwards due to more injuries. A very unlucky season, but the performances were mostly strong. 6/10
Ralls: Ralls's reliability is his greatest asset. There's honestly not a lot to say here, another season of meeting expectations and being a great servant to the club, as usual, and being an integral part of the midfield. 7/10
Ramsey: Ramsey is a little difficult to rank. Based strictly on his performances, work ethic, gamesense and role in the team, he's easily an 8 in the games he's played. But can you really give an 8 to a player who has been injured most of the season? I don't think I can. Top quality player when available, but sadly not available enough to be as massive an impact as expected. 7/10
R. Colwill: Absolutely deserving of the breakout star of the season, and a very important piece of the puzzle that is our team, but I feel might be slightly overhyped by some. This is not a knock at Rubin, he's only 22 and has plenty of room to grow as a player; he's not reached his peak yet. Things will absolutely get better. But I'm judging based on current performances rather than the future. A good player already, and the potential to be great. 7/10
Sawyers: Apparently played 8 games for us this season. All I remember was a bad performance against Blackburn in the Carabao Cup. Absolutely should be moved on. 3/10
Adams: Another player I completely forgot played for us and had basically no real impact in the games he did play. 3/10
Ashford: Ashford, like the Colwills, is a player with bags of potential and in a short time, has demonstrated excellent attacking prowess, with a wonderful performance against a veteran Southampton team and good performances elsewhere. Could absolutely start for us next season. 7/10
J. Colwill: Apparently played 5 games for us this season including his bench appearances. Looked good when he appeared, but obviously not enough to give a high rating. That's fine, another one for the future. 6/10
Attackers:
Grant: Now Grant is an interesting one. Grant's greatest asset is his attitude and work-rate, which has been noticeable throughout the entire season, seeing us through some tough games and even in poor team performances, has been one of the better players on the pitch, very rarely handing a bad performance himself. I would not be averse to making him a permanent signing if he can promise the same performances next season. 7/10
(I accidentally submitted the thread too early, the rest of the ratings will be added shortly)
To give a sense of where we should be going from here on forward, I though a player rankings list would be a good way to process my thoughts. Of course, there will be indubitably be disagreements, and that's fine, but I just felt like sharing my personal thoughts about the individual performances throughout the entire season. I'll be sticking to a 5 appearances minimum role, so a few players will miss out (lol Jack Simpson), because I don't feel there's enough there to judge them off of.
Without further ado, here are my player ratings.
Goalkeepers:
Alnwick: I actually think Alnwick could be considered a sleeper candidate for player of the year, and the main reason he isn't is due to his phasing out for Horvath in the second half of the season. Plenty of excellent and dedicated performances that saved us points in some games and prevented embarrassing losses in others. Felt a bit bad when Horvath took his starting role, but he absolutely stepped up and gave his best for the club. 8/10
Runarsson: Conversely, I think Runarsson was simply not good enough at this level. There were absolutely a few examples where points and games were lost due to a poor performance, and he didn't do enough to show any quality over Alnwick. Whilst not horrifically awful, and many of the goals were ones I wouldn't expect anyone to save, he absolutely left a lot to be desired. 4/10.
Horvath: Horvath is perhaps our best piece of business this season. A goalkeeper who has proven his quality in the Championship by being on promotion winning sides twice now, it was a bit much to ask for a threepeat, Horvath absolutely delivered and gave us some wonderful saves and very few genuinely poor performances. If Alnwick can be retained for next season, I have the utmost faith in our keepers next season. 8/10
Defenders:
McGuinness: McGuinness has always been a dependable force in a Cardiff shirt, and this season was no exception. Some standout performances, particularly against the Jacks at home, at the Stadium of Light, and both games against Watford. Conversely, very few games where he could be considered less than average. The injury was unfortunate, but hopefully will not kill his momentum when he returns, hopefully for us. 7/10
Wilson-Esbrand: An exciting young player from Manchester City who tended to play more of an offensive wing position rather than a wing-back role and a great ability to hold the ball. Plenty of room for him to grow as a player and showed a lot of potential in spurts. Would not be opposed to getting on a permanent and need to see more of him. 6/10
Ng: The official player of the season for the team, and it's not hard to see why. A solid defensive presence combined with an outstanding offensive presence that even many Premier League level teams would be envious of, and likely makes him a wanted man. A joint top goalscorer and joint second in assists, Ng has established himself as perhaps the best right-back in the league alongside Southampton's Walker-Peters. The rating isn't higher only because there were occasional issues with consistency regarding defensive work. 8/10 and POTS
Philips: Philips has won a lot of fans over in his short time here, and he's demonstrated a good work ethic and some excellent defensive plays. Whilst not every game has been wonderful (Hull comes to mind), he's successfully shut down a lot of goal scoring opportunities single-handedly. Seriously worth the consideration for a permanent deal if the price is right. 7/10
Goutas: Goutas was a bit of an enigma when arriving here last summer, but has shown relative consistency as a starting centre-back throughout the entire season with a sturdy tackle. Whilst perhaps not as work-rate heavy as McGuinness and Philips, Goutas has made up for it with an excellent ability to secure goals through aerial set-pieces with his head, securing us much needed points. A good hand instrumental in some very important moments. 7/10
Panzo: I honestly forgot this guy even played for us. Came in with a fair degree of fanfare, but between Goutas and McGuinness being pretty much unreplaceable for the first half of the season, and poor performances when he did appear, it was absolutely the best decision to give him back to Forest. Very underwhelming, but a lot of it wasn't his fault to be fair. 3/10
Romeo: Romeo, oh Romeo! Being a backup defender is never fun, but when given the opportunity, he sadly couldn't deliver and got bullied perpetually by wingers throughout the season. To be fair, this is somewhat expected of a backup defender, and not every performance was necessarily bad, but he left very little impression despite low expectations and probably should be moved on. 4/10
Collins: Collins is a very interesting player to talk about. Having sat in the Grandstand for a few games this season, I got to see Collins up close and I can definitely notice he puts in the effort and does whatever he can to be an attacking and defensive presence. But on top of living within Ng's shadow, Collins sadly, from a pure skill perspective, falls a little short for Championship level. The effort is commendable, however, but maybe not a starter for next season. 5/10
Midfielders:
Wintle: I really don't know what to make of Wintle. There are some games where he's outstanding and he absolutely makes a difference, and has even won us points on more than one occasion. There are other times where he's less than a non-factor and actively dragging the team down. I think, ultimately, we need someone more consistent ala Ralls. Moments of greatness, but not enough to offset the bad. 5/10
Turnbull: Cardiff's biggest signing this January, Turnbull left after a strong spell at Celtic, but so far, has yet to really live up to the expectations on the whole. I don't think this is through a lack of working hard, but I think Colwill holding his preferred position as attacking midfielder has impacted this somewhat. It's definitely too early to judge Turnbull as either a success or a failure though. Next season will be the real test. 5/10
Siopis: For the first half of the season, Siopis was an absolute monster, a Terminator with an outstanding, tireless work-rate that did everything to shut down attacks, a surefire POTS performance. But then, things fell off. Not to a horrific degree, and you get the sense he was always trying, but for some reason, the stamina and defensive presence wasn't quite the same. But this was a positive first season for the Greek veteran in the club. 7/10
O'Dowda: A stunning start to the season was cruelly stalled by a long-term injury that left him out for months. When he returned, he certainly showed quality in his substitute appearances, but wasn't really given enough starts afterwards due to more injuries. A very unlucky season, but the performances were mostly strong. 6/10
Ralls: Ralls's reliability is his greatest asset. There's honestly not a lot to say here, another season of meeting expectations and being a great servant to the club, as usual, and being an integral part of the midfield. 7/10
Ramsey: Ramsey is a little difficult to rank. Based strictly on his performances, work ethic, gamesense and role in the team, he's easily an 8 in the games he's played. But can you really give an 8 to a player who has been injured most of the season? I don't think I can. Top quality player when available, but sadly not available enough to be as massive an impact as expected. 7/10
R. Colwill: Absolutely deserving of the breakout star of the season, and a very important piece of the puzzle that is our team, but I feel might be slightly overhyped by some. This is not a knock at Rubin, he's only 22 and has plenty of room to grow as a player; he's not reached his peak yet. Things will absolutely get better. But I'm judging based on current performances rather than the future. A good player already, and the potential to be great. 7/10
Sawyers: Apparently played 8 games for us this season. All I remember was a bad performance against Blackburn in the Carabao Cup. Absolutely should be moved on. 3/10
Adams: Another player I completely forgot played for us and had basically no real impact in the games he did play. 3/10
Ashford: Ashford, like the Colwills, is a player with bags of potential and in a short time, has demonstrated excellent attacking prowess, with a wonderful performance against a veteran Southampton team and good performances elsewhere. Could absolutely start for us next season. 7/10
J. Colwill: Apparently played 5 games for us this season including his bench appearances. Looked good when he appeared, but obviously not enough to give a high rating. That's fine, another one for the future. 6/10
Attackers:
Grant: Now Grant is an interesting one. Grant's greatest asset is his attitude and work-rate, which has been noticeable throughout the entire season, seeing us through some tough games and even in poor team performances, has been one of the better players on the pitch, very rarely handing a bad performance himself. I would not be averse to making him a permanent signing if he can promise the same performances next season. 7/10
(I accidentally submitted the thread too early, the rest of the ratings will be added shortly)
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