Cardiff could be forgiven for having a full-blown existential crisis with regards to their academy.
Having seen Charlie Crew and Gabriele Biancheri picked off by Leeds and Manchester United respectively, the acceptance is that they won’t be the last. Lewys Benjamin was all set to join the exodus, but reported complications relating to his Manchester City medical have seen him remain in South Wales, but seemingly only temporarily, with Wolves keen to push through a summer move.
What is clear is that Cardiff’s academy is a success. They’re producing players of the requisite standard, unfortunately just not for the intended recipients.
Cardiff are (relatively) handsomely rewarded though, with around £1m likely to have been received for those two departures. How that money is used remains to be seen. Hopefully some of it will be reinvested back into the academy, so that Cardiff can raid the category three clubs in the area for replacements, but those funds may instead be absorbed, in order to keep the club Financial Fair Play compliant.
Loss creates a vacuum and opportunities for the next in line. That appears to be Tanatswa Nyakuhwa and Japhet Matondo.
Both are now 17, joined the academy at seven and were born a week apart. Both are also fluid attackers, whether wide or centrally, so were destined to be thrust together. They also represent Wales at Under-19 level and both netted in a 2-2 draw against Scotland last month.
Nyakuhwa notched up 17 goals and 10 assists for the Under-16’s last season and both signed first-year scholarship terms in the summer. Matondo, the younger brother of former academy graduate and Welsh international Rabbi, was the subject of interest from his club Rangers, plus old firm rivals Celtic and Leeds, before signing a professional contract, which prevented a repeat of the situation where Cardiff lost Rabbi to Manchester City.
Nyakuhwa has a year remaining of his scholarship, but with clubs on both sides of the border now closely monitoring his progress too, a pro deal is surely a formality in the near future. That would not end interest, but it gives Cardiff a bit more security and control, as any potential transfer would follow a more traditional process, rather than involving a tribunal.
This season, both are thriving. With Nyakuhwa playing in a more central role, he has 18 goals already, including recent braces against Reading and Ipswich. A hat-trick in a 4-1 win against Swansea drew plenty of attention and Matondo bagged the fourth. With six goals, Matondo is the second highest scorer, with a solid return from the wing. Both have already featured for the Under-21’s and that will presumably represent the next step in their development.
While a pathway to the first-team remains, academy graduates are finding playing time harder to come by this season, but that was probably inevitable with such a high turnover of managers and a perilous league position. Joel Bagan, Tom Sang, Eli King and Mark Harris all look likely to depart in the coming months, while a pivotal season awaits Isaak Davies and Rubin Colwill, who have struggled for fitness this year.
With a brand-new academy complex in Llanrumney on the horizon, there is sure to be an increased interest in the youth set-up and there is also scope to push for Category One status further down the line. With the likes of Nyakuhwa and Matondo thriving, the future looks bright and the production line of talent continues to produce.