Neil Warnock believes he has signed one of the best left backs around in Cardiff City’s new recruit Greg Cunningham.
The Bluebirds manager has spent £3.5m on the Preston defender to make it two deals in a week following his £11m move for Norwich City winger Josh Murphy.
The pair reflect Warnock’s earlier insistence at the end of last season that promotion to the Premier League would be followed by pragmatic spending in certain areas, rather than the big money splurges that marked their previous one-season spell in the top flight.
Cunningham, 27, has signed a three-year contract and Warnock said: “It’s fair to say that I’ve been an admirer of Greg for a number of years.
“He’s consistently been one of the best left-sided defenders for club and country.
“We’re delighted to have his experience and knowledge so as to supplement Joe Bennett who had a great time last season.
“I anticipate that Greg coming in will give us a lot of strength down that left-hand side.”
Cunningham, who is a Republic of Ireland international, made 21 appearances for Preston last season.
But he had been a mainstay in Preston’s side in the previous two campaigns, playing 83 out of 92 possible league games between 2015 and 2017.