1 day Ago By [email protected] (Glen Williams)
It wasn't so long ago that Ryan Wintle was a central figure in the Cardiff City squad. One of the first names on the team sheet under Erol Bulut, donning the captain's arm band on numerous occasions, signing new, lengthy deals with the club, all seemed to be travelling in the right direction for him. It was a huge bombshell, then, when Bulut bombed him out of the first-team squad and left him out of the travelling cohort ahead of the club's pre-season tour of Austria.
After all, this was a player who had played 44 times for Bulut in his first season in charge – only Dimitrios Goutas (46) played more. Bulut suggested that Wintle wanted even more game-time and said that could not be guaranteed. Whether that was the real reason remains to be seen.
Sign up to our daily Cardiff City newsletter here . Given how painfully poorly Cardiff started the season, and with a trigger-happy owner, too, some thought that Wintle would wait it out for Bulut to go in order for him to get a fresh shot under the next manager. Alas, he opted for a loan move to Millwall, where former Bluebirds boss Neil Harris was in charge.
It's been a disappointing campaign for the midfielder, though. The 27-year-old has played just 18 Championship games for the Lions and one FA Cup match. When asked if there was any potential for Wintle to be recalled in January, current Bluebirds boss Omer Riza replied: "Currently we have three, four, five midfielders in the building, granted there are a few injuries.
Ryan Wintle is a good player. He has gone out on loan, he has played here a while and he has got good qualities. "He plays in the six.
The potential for that to happen could be there, but when Ryan left the building it's because he wanted to play more football regularly and that could probably be a potential issue again if he came back in the building and that could bring frustrations with it." Given Cardiff have so many midfielders — and the loan focus has largely centred around Wales youth internationals Joel Colwill and Eli King who also play in that position — how Wintle has fared has generally scooted under the radar. But when asked why he just hasn't played as much as he should, Southwark News' Millwall correspondent, William Scott, told WalesOnline: "It’s probably come down to two factors.
Firstly, he was signed mostly as cover because Millwall only really had two fit centre midfielders coming into the season with Billy Mitchell out with a long-term injury. While Mitchell was out Wintle tended to be the first midfielder off the bench or would rotate in and start certain away games. He fell down the pecking order once Mitchell came back around the start of December.
"It’s also important to point out that he was a Neil Harris signing. Harris was reasonably vocal about how he wanted to bring in more experienced players while the club are looking to go more down the Brentford, Brighton route of signing younger players who can grow in value. Harris used to get criticised by fans for playing the older, less ‘sexy’ pros who he believed he could rely on in big games - Wintle was one of those.
"Even if he wasn’t one of the first names on the team sheet he trusted him to ‘do a job’ in tricky away games. He used to come on late to help see out games or be rotated in once one of Casper De Norre or George Saville needed a rest. "Harris leaving and Mitchell returning to the first team happened basically at the same time and it was almost like a perfect storm in terms of reducing his game-time.
He played a bit in Alex Neil’s first month or so but didn’t start a game and hasn’t really been seen since February - as far as I’m aware he’s not injured." Clearly, the departure of Harris, who pushed to signed Wintle, and arrival of Neil has hampered his playing time, too. He has not played in any of the last nine Championship games and has been out of the squad all together in three of those matches.
Indeed, he has just four substitute appearances — totalling 49 minutes — since the turn of the year. It's been less than ideal, to say the least. "He was one Harris trusted and based on his comments I reckon asked to sign him when he became available," Scott added.
"Neil hasn’t commented on Wintle but wasn’t involved in bringing him to the club and clearly prefers Mitchell - who is better suited to his style of play. Mitchell is one of those technical midfielders who isn't particularly physical but is press resistant and calm on the ball. "Neil is trying to ‘modernise’ Millwall and make them better at retaining possession while still being defensively solid, and Mitchell is the sort of midfielder that suits that sort of system.
It would therefore then be between Saville and Wintle for the first midfielder off the bench, and Saville has been at the club for a long time and is one of the key members of the leadership group in the dressing room, as well as still being a very useful Championship midfielder." From a Millwall perspective, Wintle has been solid if not spectacular, perhaps much like his time with Cardiff so far. The former Crewe man has had spells during which he has been heralded by supporters, while at time Bluebirds fans targeted him when things started to slide.
Reports of him snapping back at supporters at Cardiff City Stadium during a spell in which he was facing constant criticism didn't help endear him to those who were on the fence, either. But on the pitch his contributions stack up to others in his position at Cardiff, so has he been able to contribute at all during his fleeting appearances on loan in London? "He’s been decent in the games we’ve got to see him in," Scott added. "He’s not been one that’s stood out particularly, especially because he’s only started three league games.
"He was often drafted in for away games and was effective at helping Millwall keep their shape and stay defensively solid. It is hard to judge how he would do now purely because Neil has completely changed how they play. He scored a great goal against Sheffield Wednesday to nab a draw in Neil’s second game.
He’s only played three more games since, all as a late sub and helped Millwall see out wins. "He’s certainly not been a liability when he plays, it is just hard to think of specific moments other than the Wednesday goal." WHATSAPP: Join the Cardiff City breaking news and top stories WhatsApp community Wintle, who has racked up 117 appearances, five goals and eight assists in a Bluebirds shit, signed a new deal with Cardiff when Bulut was at the helm, so he will have another 12 months left to run on his contract when his loan expires in the summer.
His future is likely contingent on many things, not least in which division Cardiff find themselves next year, however Scott believes it's unlikely that The Den will be his permanent home next term. "It’s hard to say," he said when asked whether Millwall would like to sign Wintle permanently. "I’d imagine for Wintle he’d view it as a failed spell because he only started three games and had to contend with a managerial change.
"For the club, it’s less clear. They needed midfield cover while Mitchell recovered and he provided that. He was a solid presence and let Harris rotate and rest Saville and De Norre.
I would be surprised if they came in for him in the summer - they need to sign a couple of midfielders but based on how they’ve approached the market since adopting this new sustainable transfer policy I’d imagine they would be young midfielders. "While Millwall have fully committed to the sporting director, head coach model, Neil still gets a say and I’d imagine he’d want to sign some of his own players.".
