Neil Warnock says Cardiff City made huge ‘mistake’ this summer, it could ruin promotion plans

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Cardiff City have been told that one mistake could have drastic effects on their season; Neil Warnock is not happy.

After a bitterly disappointing 2024/25 Championship season, Cardiff City will now look to rebuild in League One.

Cardiff City fell short last season under Omar Riza, and Aaron Ramsey came in too late to salvage the Bluebirds’ season.

Whilst all eyes are on Cardiff looking to notch an immediate return to the Championship, former Bluebirds boss Neil Warnock doesn’t have too much confidence in the South-Welsh club achieving their clear target in the upcoming League One season.

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Neil Warnock discusses why Cardiff City could struggle this season

So far in the summer transfer window, Cardiff City have been rather quiet. There hasn’t been a single arrival at the club yet, whilst departures have occurred in large numbers.

Notable names that have left Cardiff include Aaron Ramsey, Anwar El Ghazi, and Callum O’Dowda.

However, Warnock has noted that the biggest absence of a star who Cardiff will struggle without this season is Joe Ralls.

“I don’t think it will be straightforward to get out,” said Warnock when speaking to The Athletic. “It’s why I believe Cardiff have made a mistake in allowing Joe Ralls to go. Joe has still got a lot to offer at 31.

“Whether it was out of the manager’s hands or not, I don’t know, but I’d certainly have looked to keep him. The manager would have had a big ally on the field.”

Despite the pessimistic views ahead of the upcoming season for Cardiff, Warnock reiterated that they deserve to be further up the English pyramid as he compares them to a previous Premier League winner.

“Cardiff is a big club,” adds the 76-year-old. “As a city, it could easily sustain Premier League football. You look at clubs like Leicester and Southampton, who’ve had lengthy spells up there. To me, Cardiff are on that level as a club, or should be.”

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Cardiff could face a similar fate to Sunderland in League One

The last decade or so has seen several big clubs make a surprising drop down to League One, some of which struggle to emerge from it until years later.

A notable example of this has to be Sunderland, who spent a total of four seasons in the English third tier before they returned to the Championship.

League One is set to be highly competitive next season, especially with the expectations that will be placed on the shoulders of Luton Town and Plymouth Argyle.

It will be a challenge for Cardiff to notch promotion back to the Championship, which is why it is crucial that they adequately replace their departed players, including Ralls, who Warnock correctly suggests will be sorely missed by the Bluebirds.