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Tom Coleman

Cardiff City transfer news as bookies make Sam Allardyce new favourite to take hot-seat

Here's your round-up of all the latest Cardiff City headlines for Friday, January 20.

Allardyce new favourite for Bluebirds job

Sam Allardyce has suddenly emerged from nowhere to become the new bookies' favourite for Cardiff City manager.

Big Sam's odds plummeted from 33-1 to even money after a flurry of bets were placed on him on Friday afternoon.

READ MORE: Cardiff City confident of signing 'one or two' before deadline day as Dean Whitehead reveals manager ambitions

The former England manager has been out of work since stepping down from his post West Bromwich Albion in the summer of 2021, but has now been tipped to return to football with a move to the capital. You can read live updates here.

Former Bluebirds boss Neil Warnock has drifted away from being red-hot favourite for the first time, going from 1-2 odds on to 2-1 against.

Next comes former West Brom boss Valerien Ismael at 7-1, followed by Liam Manning at 9-1, while stand-in boss Dean Whitehead's chances of getting the gig full time have drifted out to 16-1.

Colwill closing in on start

Cardiff City interim boss Dean Whitehead says he has no injury concerns ahead of his side's clash with Millwall on Saturday.

Wales youngster Rubin Colwill is in contention for a start, as is the returning Mark McGuinness, whose recall from Sheffield Wednesday was confirmed this week.

Meanwhile, Mahlon Romeo is closing in on a return after a recent hamstring injury, while Ebou Adams and Jamilu Collins remain out.

"I think with Rubin he had 45 minutes on Wednesday night. He’s been ill and he’s had a few problems, but everyone’s in contention to start," Whitehead said.

"Mahlon's not far away. Ebou's got a little bit of time left. Jamilu Collins will be a good few months yet. Everyone else is fit."

Whitehead's message to fans amid protest threats

Dean Whitehead has called on fans to get behind his Cardiff City side when they take on Millwall on Saturday.

A section of Cardiff fans are understood to be planning a protest against the City hierarchy during the visit of the Lions, although the exact details aren't yet clear.

It's certainly been a tough time for the Bluebirds, with the club extending their winless run 10 games in all competitions following the FA Cup third round replay defeat to Leeds United on Wednesday.

Cardiff are now just three points off the relegation zone heading into the weekend, and Whitehead, while understanding of the frustrations of supporters, hopes they will show their backing come kick-off.

"It's an important few weeks," he said. "It's an important 48 hours. I think in the present in the right now. In the today and the tomorrow, I'd just urge them to get behind the boys.

"They need your support. We know we need to do something on the pitch to get their support and get them behind us.

"We're all in this together. If we can put in a good performance on Saturday and get three points, everything looks a bit better. That's our main focus. Get behind the boys and they'll give you everything."

McCarthy glad to be back

Mick McCarthy says he's delighted to be back in football after spending the last year or so out of work.

The veteran has been confirmed as Blackpool's new manager this week, having been without a club since leaving Cardiff in the middle of last season.

And he says the time spent away was a huge motivator in him taking the job at Bloomfield Road, despite the Tangerines currently battling against the drop.

He told TangerineTV: “I want to get back in the game, I’ve been out of the game for 12 months and I guess I have a bit of history of inheriting teams when they have had a bit of a struggle and managed to get them out of that trouble.

“So hopefully that’s going to be the same again. When we stay up we can all be happy and make it look like a good decision.

“Everybody will have an opinion on it but I have got experience of getting teams out of trouble from the bottom of the league.”

“I’d say so (time out beneficial) because it’s a tough old gig. It’s an enjoyable job but I’ve had over 1,000 games. I’ve got mates in football saying to me ‘you’re mad, you’re off your head going back in, stay out’.

“But no, I want to be back in because I love it. I love being on the training ground, I love TC (Terry Connor) who is my assistant and he’s desperate to get back in. We’ve been out for over 12 months now and it’s a long time, it’s too long, so I’m thrilled to be back in.”

Would you like to see Sam Allardyce as Cardiff City manager? Have your say in our comments section below

READ NEXT:

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Shocking Cardiff City vs Leeds United player ratings as defenders ripped to shreds on dark night

Leeds United 5-2 Cardiff City: Managerless Bluebirds battered in embarrassing FA Cup defeat

Inside the methods of Valerien Ismael, the pragmatic fiery coach who could be the ideal fit for Cardiff City

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