Neil Warnock is aiming high in his final season of football management and that means taking his Bluebirds back to the Premier League.
Cardiff City’s manager insists he will retire at the end of 2019-20 or possibly earlier if they are not challenging to go up.
“The reason I came to Cardiff was because I thought I could get my eighth promotion and call it a day. Here I am talking about a ninth.”
Warnock will assess where his team are in terms of a promotion push at Christmas, saying: “It’s pointless being here if there’s no chance of promotion,” he said.
“That’s why I say we will have to have a look at it at Christmas and see where we are.”
He was ready to retire at the end of last season if City had stayed up, but decided to carry on, saying: “I really should be on the Mediterranean now, because we should have stayed up.
That would have been a lovely time to call it a day. But life’s not like that, it’s not straightforward. We have to regroup.
“We have a really good squad now and we are going to give it a really good go.”
Cardiff start their Championship season against Wigan Athletic at the DW Stadium on Saturday, but new £5.5m striker Robert Glatzel won’t be playing.
He was sent off at the end of last season while playing for FC Heidenheim and was suspended for two matches. He served one of those in Germany and has to miss the Wigan fixture.
Glatzel was City’s main target over the summer and Warnock said: “He seemed the best value for money for what we were looking for and the type of lad we were looking for.
“He is a team player who works extremely hard.
“There will be deficiencies, but in the last two years since he’s come on to the scene, his finishing is quite good as well, so let’s hope he can do the business for us.
“We’ve always struggled for goals when I’ve been here. I just feel Robert gives us something different. The physical side won’t worry him too much. He has a bit of an edge to his game.”
Glatzel was Warnock’s sixth signing of the summer following goalkeeper Joe Day, Gavin Whyte, Aden Flint, Curtis Nelson and Will Vaulks.
He still hopes to add to his squad ahead of next Thursday’s transfer deadline. That could be loan players from Premier League club’s with midfield and attack the areas to be strengthened.
A number of fringe players look set to leave the club.
Captain Sean Morrison admits he is ‘excited’ by the prospect of a promotion chase in 2019-20.
“We’re excited to get back into the thick of it now,” he says.
“Having that season in the Premier League and coming so close to staying was a big achievement. If anything. We have more of an edge now.
“The squad here wants to get back to that. We want to win promotion and give it another go.
“There is not a better manager (than Neil Warnock) with a knowledge of a league and the nous to get teams promoted. You see that in his record.
“It’s going to be a tough season – there are a lot of good teams in the Championship – but we’re looking sharp.
“We’re ready, and hopefully we can get a big start.”
Morrison is keen to play in then South Wales derby this season, saying: “This is my sixth season with City and I’ve yet to be part of a South Wales derby. To be able to lead the team out in that game will be huge.”
Opening day opponents Wigan Athletic finished the 2018-19 season 18th in the Championship league table with 52 points on their tally.
They spent the previous season in League One, having been relegated from the Championship at the end of 2016-17.
Wigan will have former Bluebirds captain David Marshall in goal, while Anthony Pilkington is also in the Latics’ squad.
Cardiff City squad numbers for the 2019-20 season have now been confirmed:
1. Neil Etheridge
2. Lee Peltier
3. Joe Bennett
4. Sean Morrison (C)
5. Aden Flint
6. Will Vaulks
7. Leandro Bacuna
8. Joe Ralls
9. Robert Glatzel
11. Josh Murphy
12. Alex Smithies
13. Callum Paterson
14. Bobby De Cordova-Reid
16. Curtis Nelson
17. Lee Tomlin
18. Greg Cunningham
19. Nathaniel Mendez-Laing
20. Gavin Whyte
21. Jazz Richards
22. Sol Bamba
23. Danny Ward
24. Gary Madine
25. Joe Day
27. Omar Bogle
30. Ciaron Brown
31. Aaron Bolger
33. Junior Hoilett
Cardiff City 2019-20 Sky Bet Championship Fixtures in full.
August
Sat 3 – Wigan Athletic (A)
Sat 10 – Luton Town (H)
Sun 18 – Reading, noon (A)
Wed 21 – Huddersfield Town (H)
Sat 24 – Blackburn Rovers (A)
Fri 30 – Fulham (H)
September
Fri 13 – Derby County, 7.45pm (A)
Sat 21 – Middlesbrough (H)
Sat 28 – Hull City (A)
October
Wed 2 – QPR (H)
Sat 5 – WBA (A)
Sat 19 – Sheffield Wednesday (H)
Tue 22 – Millwall (A)
Sat 26 – Swansea City (A)
November
Sat 2 – Birmingham City (H)
Sat 9 – Bristol City (H)
Sat 23 – Charlton Athletic (A)
Tue 26 – Stoke City (H)
Sat 30 – Nottingham Forest (A)
December
Sat 7 – Barnsley (H)
Wed 11 – Brentford (A)
Sat 14 – Leeds United (A)
Sat 21 – Preston North End (H)
Thu 26 – Millwall (H)
Sun 29 – Sheffield Wednesday (A)
January
Wed 1 – QPR (A)
Sat 11 – Swansea City (H)
Sat 18 – Birmingham City (A)
Sat 25 – WBA (H)
Fri 31 – Reading (H)
February
Sat 8 – Luton Town (A)
Wed 12 – Huddersfield Town (A)
Sat 15 – Wigan Athletic (H)
Sat 22 – Stoke City (A)
Tue 25 – Nottingham Forest (H)
Sat 29 – Brentford (H)
March
Sat 7 – Barnsley (A)
Sun 15 – Leeds United, 1pm (H)
Tue 17 – Preston North End (A)
Sat 21 – Charlton Athletic (H)
April
Sat 4 – Bristol City (A)
Fri 10 – Blackburn Rovers (H)
Tues 14 – Fulham (A)
Sat 18 – Derby County (H)
Sat 25 – Middlesbrough (A)
May
Sat 2 v Hull City (H)