Cardiff City's exciting crop of young talent ready to bang the door down next season

Having seen a glimpse of the future during the Southampton game on Saturday, Cardiff City fans are getting excited about the future of the football club.

While Cardiff’s academy has failed to produce much since the likes of Aaron Ramsey and Joe Ledley rose through their ranks, there is a new lease of life.

Cian Ashford’s winner was the standout moment from the match, but the game also saw two new debutants get an opportunity from the bench, in Raheem Conte and Luey Giles.

Cardiff’s long injury list meant that the side ended the game with an impressive five academy players or graduates on the pitch.

The club recently opened their new £8million academy facility in Llanrumney which will only add to the optimism around the youth set-up. The development is a clear sign of the club’s intention to invest in youth.

Cardiff City U21s manager, Darren Purse, reacted to the game on Twitter: “Had worse days!!! #bluebirds”

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The next generation of talent is there and banging on the first-team door. These are the ones to look out for.

Cian Ashford

Nineteen-year-old Ashford has burst onto the scene in the past couple of weeks after first joining Cardiff aged just six years old, and he’s instantly become a fan favourite.

It was hard to compute that it was less than two weeks since Ashford made his league debut against Birmingham City when he scored that all-important extra time winner from 25 yards out against Southampton on Saturday.

The boy from Rhondda has been exciting academy staff for years and now he is certainly making the most of the opportunity Erol Bulut has given him.

In the last two weeks he’s featured twice from the bench and was awarded a start against Southampton.

Ashford has also scored twice for Wales Under-19s in just three appearances, and was in the most recent Wales Under-21s squad.

Raheem Conte

Raheem Conte, 21, was one of two debutants to come off the bench on Saturday.

The midfielder, who joined Cardiff from QPR in 2022, came on and played out of position at right-back. He settled into the game almost instantly, setting up Famara Diédhiou’s equaliser just minutes after he came onto the pitch.

Conte has described himself as an expressive player who likes taking the ball up the park.

The youngster will, however, be out of contract at Cardiff in the summer and it remains to be seen whether his show on Saturday will be enough to reward him an extension.

One suspects that after his performance against Saints, and with injuries rife among Bulut's squad, outings against Middlesbrough and Rotherham United surely await. Two more opportunities to impress.

Luey Giles

After Ollie Tanner went down injured against Southampton, Giles got the chance to join his fellow academy players on the pitch.

The 17-year-old defender provided Ashford with the assist which gave Cardiff a last-minute win. Sign up to our Cardiff City newsletter here.

Giles, from Ely, has represented Wales at age-grade level, most recently for Wales Under-19s for whom he’s made three appearances.

His substitute role meant Giles became the 10th-youngest player to play for Cardiff in the Championship, and he’s so young he had to wear a different shirt to the rest of the squad, unable to wear a shirt featuring the SkyBet branding.

Joel Colwill

Joel Colwill, 19, is looking to follow in the footsteps of his older brother Rubin.

Despite spending much of this season as an unused sub on Cardiff’s bench, the midfielder is highly regarded by Cardiff staff, and fans have been calling for his introduction all season long after the success of his brother.

Colwill has also represented his country in the youth set-up and made his debut for Wales U21s in September last year.

Cameron Antwi

Cameron Antwi played youth football for Fulham and Blackpool and enjoyed loan stints at Southport and then AFC Telford.

London-born Antwi, who plays in midfield, signed for Cardiff in August 2022. The 22-year-old made his first-team debut for Cardiff as a substitute in the FA Cup third-round game against Sheffield Wednesday.

But like Conte, Antwi’s contract is due to run out this summer. He has been one of the standout players for the under-21s for some time, but will he get his shot at impressing in the final two games of the Championship season? Time will tell.

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James Crole

James Crole went on loan from Cardiff City to Queen’s Park FC, who play in the Scottish Championship, at the end of January.

The striker made his debut for the Scottish team against Inverness Caledonian Thistle in February but has mainly featured for their B side since.

The loan has been more successful than his loan to Torquay United last season, which was cut short following an ankle injury.

In September, he made a 60th-minute substitute appearance for Cardiff in their Carabao Cup tie against Blackburn Rovers. Crole, who also represents Wales at Under-19s level, has been a prolific scorer for the Bluebirds' age-grade sides in recent years, but now must make that step up to the first team and start playing regular senior football.

Morgan Wigley

Morgan Wigley, 19, joined Cardiff when he was just seven years old.

Some Cardiff fans may recall him making an impression at the Peter Whittingham Memorial game against Aston Villa. He assisted Kion Etete with a superb cross in the third goal of the game.

The forward has appeared for Wales at both under-18 and under-19 level and has made the bench a number of times for the Bluebirds this season.

Dylan Lawlor

Dylan Lawlor, an 18-year-old Caerphilly-born centre-back, also signed for Cardiff aged seven.

Lawlor is a regular feature for Cardiff Under-21s and was an unused substitute for the first team against Southampton.

He has made appearances for Wales across the age grades, including captaining the side at under-19 level. In March 2023, he scored a crucial header to ensure Wales Under-17s qualified for the European Championships for the first time ever.

Contemporaries Tanatswa Nyakuhwa (18) and Troy Perrett (17) are also impressing for Cardiff at age-grade level.