Following the prior dismissals of both Steve Morison and former assistant Mark Hudson, there is, once again, a gaping vacancy at the Cardiff City Stadium.

This conundrum is nothing new, though it is imperative that this time, the right manager is appointed and adequate backing and support is provided in equal measure.

With the fear-inducing threat of relegation to League One more prominent than ever before, the clubs next appointment will no doubt prove decisive towards the division that they will ply their trade in come August.

And, as is the norm when a club parts ways with their manager, the  speculation floodgates have opened up. A number of names have been touted, however, the latest to have been thrown into the hat is ex-Nottingham Forest boss Sabri Lamouchi, who managed the East Midlands outfit between June 2019 and October 2020.

During his first season, Forest had consolidated a position within the top six for seven months including lockdown, only to see a pin poked through their promotion hopes on the final day. Interrupted by the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic and unable to reignite the same red-hot streak that had saw them emerge as one of the Championship's leading form sides, Lamouchi was sacked early on into the 2020/21 campaign.

He soon joined Qatari Stars League side Al-Duhail, remaining in the Middle East for just short of a year before leaving his post back in 2021.

Should the interest transpire, what exactly can supporters expect from Lamouchi? Well, we sought the insight of Reds supporter Louis Wheeldon and here is what he had to say about the prospective appointment.

Would Lamouchi be able to ensure survival?

"My simple answer to that is yes, and I would be surprised if he didn't.

Our club were seemingly desperate to never escape the Championship, and while he didn't get us there either, he got us closer than we had experienced in a long time.

"He galvanised a squad that had zero belief, brought people forward that didn't get opportunities before and installed a real sense of belief at the club. If it wasn't for the most shocking of final day collapses  and a global pandemic, I think we would've gone up under him long before we went up under Steve Cooper."

Supporters want survival, but they also want to see an attack-minded playing style. Is this something he could bring?

"He definitely came across as more of a counter-attacking manager to me. Something that we say at Forest when comparing Sabri's team to the one that went up under Cooper was that we didn't seem to have as  much control of games as we do now. Some wins were very lucky, in truth.

"But for a side in a position like Cardiff's, his playing style that relies on defensive solidity and fast, free-flowing counter-attacks would suit you well. He's certainly a manager that is progressive and instils a more exciting style than what you've gotten used to.

"In terms of formations, he usually set out a 4-3-3 if memory serves right. But he always had a central midfielder that would drop very deep to almost act as a third centre back, which gave license to the two full-backs to attack more. This is what got the most out of Matty Cash in the season that became so vital to his development.

"In our team, that midfield role went to Ben Watson, who became one of the best in the league at the time because of how cleverly Lamouchi utilised him. Who would take that role for you, I don't know, but the system worked wonders for us."

 

Cardiff have not had a manager stay the entire season since Neil Warnock in the 2018/19 campaign, so they are desperate for sustainability and stability. Is this a realistic possibility under him?

"It depends how trigger happy your board are, which is something I don't know. We struggled heavily in lockdown without the backing of the fans and then at the start of the 20/21 season, where we lost four in a row and cost Lamouchi his job. 

"He absolutely loved Forest, however, and he loved the fans too. If you can show him the level of support we did, then you have your man."

 

Are there any downsides to Lamouchi?

"Easily his tinkering. He is liable to making unnecessary changes. I remember we beat Leeds 2-0 at home and afterwards we had relegation fighters Charlton at home too, but he made 10 changes for seemingly no reason and we got beat. It was shocking. 

"Same again away to Wigan, where we had a chance to build momentum and he started Rafa Mir up top. Stuff like that, I hope, is out of his system when it comes to a relegation battle as every point matters."

 

Looking at the Cardiff squad, are there any players in particular that you feel would thrive under his tuition?

"I'm not familiar enough with the Cardiff squad to do this question justice, to be fair! 

"If you have any midfielders who are tough in the tackle and composed on the ball then Lamouchi could get the best out of them. That's what he did here with Watson and Samba Sow."

 

While it appears that Lamouchi's style clearly benefits certain profiles in midfield, do you feel it could also diminish the output of some of Cardiff's less tenacious and more creative options such as Romaine Sawyers and Rubin Colwill? 

"I don't think that would be a problem at all. Under Sabri, we saw good stuff from different types of midfielders, like Tiago Silva in that sense.

"He gets the best out of the players he trusts, so whoever he goes with, it needs backing."

We saw how crucial he was to Matty Cash's development at Forest, which you also alluded to. Cardiff have a number of talented academy products in and around the first-team picture at the minute, would his presence prove beneficial to their progression too?


His dealing with the youth at Forest was very good. We too had a good number of young talent at the club such as Ryan Yates, Joe Worrall and, of course, Cash. Look at where they all are now, with Worrall and Yates as a captaincy duo at a Premier League club and arguably as two of our best players, it speaks volumes.

"Worrall had just come back from a loan at Rangers, nobody had wanted him to play and yet he starred for Lamouchi.

Cash was crammed in at right-back and got tore apart in his first game and everyone wanted him to play elsewhere. He stuck with it and he was our player of the season playing in that position. And then with Yates, didn't want him playing either and yet Lamouchi refined him to be so much more than just a passionate tackle-man.

"You might disagree with who gets chances under him and who he develops etc, but please trust him all the way and see where it gets you."

 

Q. Valerien Ismael has also been heavily linked with the vacant job and it currently appears as though they are the two outstanding candidates. Who do you think would be a better fit for Cardiff?

 

"I'm biased, sure, but Lamouchi would be better for me. He was so, so close to greatness at Forest and you could, I guess, say he failed, but no Forest fan would ever call him that. 

"The way he galvanised the squad and made us believe in what we could actually achieve as a club carried over past a horrific lockdown season into our promotion year. 

"If you get him, rejoice, as I back him to succeed all the way with you!"

VAVEL Logo
About the author