Leading candidate emerges in search for next Cardiff City manager, Sunderland fans will be shocked

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Cardiff City have been looking for a new permanent manager since sacking Omer Riza towards the end of the season, and EFL Analysis can exclusively reveal the Bluebirds may have found their man.

It was a truly miserable season for Cardiff, who slumped into the relegation zone under Omer Riza, leading to them parting ways with the 45-year-old with just two games remaining in the campaign.

Young coach Aaron Ramsey took over until the end of the season, but was unable to stop the rot, and Cardiff finished at the bottom of the Championship table.

Ramsey has hinted at issues behind the scenes for the Welsh club, and with life in League One to prepare for, getting the next managerial appointment right is absolutely crucial for under-fire owner Vincent Tan.

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Michael Beale leading the race to become new Cardiff City manager

In an EFL Analysis exclusive, we can reveal that Cardiff are homing in on one managerial target, with Michael Beale set for a surprise return to English football after a spell working in Saudi Arabia.

We understand Beale is now the leading candidate to take the job at Cardiff this summer, though he is among a number of options the club are considering at this time.

The Wasserman agency is overseeing the recruitment process at this time and have put together a shortlist for the role.

Alongside Beale, we could see Mark Allen – the former Rangers and Swansea City sporting director – become part of the structure behind the scenes at Cardiff moving forward.

Allen is employed by Wasserman and is also part of this search for a new manager, but we are told he could end up being the new technical director at Cardiff.

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Michael Beale’s career to date

Beale had been in Saudi Arabia since November working with Steven Gerrard at Al-Ettifaq, but the pair departed at the end of January and have been out of work since.

In the past, as Sunderland fans will certainly remember, Beale had an ill-fated spell at the Stadium of Light, which lasted for just 12 matches in the 2023/24 campaign.

That situation quickly unravelled, with sporting director Kristjaan Speakman admitting it was a mistake to hire Beale in the first place.

Beale also spent just under a year at Rangers in the SPL, and had another very short spell with QPR prior to that.

While Steven Gerrard has been linked with Southampton, it sounds like we could still see Beale back in the English game, albeit at a lower level.