Could this be true? Cardiff City wants to retain Ex boss – View

Journalist Darren Witcoop on Twitter (X) has reported that Sabri Lamouchi, a former manager of Cardiff City, will take over as the new manager of Al-Riyadh, a team in the Saudi Pro League.

Lamouchi last served as manager quite some time ago, and the former French international took a season off from coaching. He had been managing with Cardiff before then, albeit the period had had varying degrees of success.

The 52-year-old would sign with the Welsh team in January 2023, when they were ranked 21st in the third division of English football. In actuality, he would be their third permanent manager that season when Mark Hudson, who lasted only a third of the season in command, and current Sutton United boss Steve Morison were fired.

It would be Lamouchi who would lead the Bluebirds to safety, although not very convincingly. They would place 21st at the end of the season, five points above the drop zone. They were extremely fortunate, though, since Reading, the side next below them, was docked six points, which would out to be the decisive factor in the end.

Because of this, the club fired the Frenchman in the summer of last year and appointed Erol Bulut in his place. Since then, there have been advancements, as Cardiff placed 12th in the previous campaign.

The 52-year-old had discussions with two Championship teams last season, but Witcoop reports that he decided to relocate to the Saudi Pro League in order to connect with Al-Riyadh. Due to the contract expiration of Brazilian Odair Hellman, their management job is currently vacant.

Although it was in Qatar, Lamouchi has prior coaching expertise in the Middle East. He would go on to enjoy two somewhat successful stints in the Qatar Stars League: one with the now-disbanded EL Jaish and the other with Al-Duhail, his previous club to Cardiff.

The former midfield player’s management career hasn’t quite taken off, although his time with the Bluebirds did expose some weaknesses. He might be able to restart his career after joining the Saudi Pro League.

Author’s Perspective

It’s safe to say that, despite accomplishing the task assigned to him by keeping Cardiff City afloat two seasons ago, Lamouchi will not go down in history as one of the team’s most beloved managers. Things would have been drastically different and Reading would have been playing in the third division of English football if not for their point deduction.

There has been a noticeable increase in positivity at the club since then, and the team performed admirably under new manager Erol Bulut last season. However, there are still some off-field issues that could cause issues come fall. The consequence of this could be a slight regression for the Bluebirds in what appears to be a wide-open Championship next season.