Given Cardiff City are coming off the back of their worst-ever finish since being promoted to the second tier in 2003, the only way, surely, is up.
Last year saw the culmination of a number of things all go badly wrong. Aging players clinging on to the final year of their contracts, a striker in Kieffer Moore who was misfiring after a failed Premier League move in the summer and Mick McCarthy who doubled down on his dire football.
This year, fortunately for Cardiff, it's all change. Whether that is a change for the better in terms of ultimate league position remains to be seen, but the moves made behind the scenes certainly appear to be for the betterment of the club on paper.
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The wage bill has been slashed dramatically, there has been no money spent on transfer fees and the age of the squad is far better balanced, with the majority of new signings who have been brought in being in their mid-twenties.
They are still two strikers short, but the middle of the park, in goal and in the wide areas do look better equipped to take on a Championship campaign. Whether the defence is stocked well enough to keep out the goals and whether the right players are brought in to score them at the other end will be where this season is won or lost.
It's Steve Morison's first full campaign in charge. He has made a flurry of changes to the playing staff, coaching staff and, it appears, the playing style. It is hoped the football will be altered to something more akin to the modern way, better movement, more thought-out build-up play, pace through the middle and out on the flanks, which in time will pay off.
Morison hopes that even if he isn't the man to see this project through, this new ethos, with a trimmed-down wage bill and a better playing style, will be carried on for years to come. The club have come to the realisation, he hopes, that they cannot simply flip and flop between managers, styles, systems, recruitment ethos, it all has to be aligned and he continues to say that is the case.
Whether that comes to fruition in perfect harmony on the pitch this season is another matter all together, mind you. As ever in this game, there will be many expecting instant success, others who will have more patience and a few who believe this is a transitional period which could take longer to implement, given the summer of transfer chaos which has ensued.
That mustn't lead to a sluggish start to the campaign, though. In each of the last three campaigns, Cardiff have began poorly and have needed to fight their way up the table in the new year. On December 30 the last three years they have been; 10th and finished fifth (2020), 15th and finished eighth (2021) and 20th before finishing 18th last season.
That cannot afford to happen again, it is crippling their seasons before they even get going. That is why it has been so important for Cardiff to get so much of their transfer work done early on in the window. Morison wanted a full pre-season with them to ensure his charges were as battle-ready as they could be to afford themselves the greatest opportunity of starting well.
The January firefighting job cannot continue because one time it will be their undoing, or they will give themselves too much of a deficit to claw back. The remarkable recruitment job which was undertaken this January, via the loan market, saw City consolidate their Championship status in the end, but it was still too close for comfort.
One positive of last year's horror campaign was the ability to blood so many young players, some of whom are likely to have a much bigger say in proceedings this time out.
Rubin Colwill is expected to have a greater influence on the campaign than he did last season, when he was rotated constantly despite some flashes of genius on the ball. Another year older, more Championship and international games under his belt, it will be exciting to see what sort of influence he wields with the ball at his feet over the next 12 months.
Isaak Davies showed flashes of excitement, too, with his raw pace and unfearful, direct running at defenders. Perhaps he was a little inconsistent, but let's hope he has ironed that out and will bring that same pace and fight he showed last term, with a few extra goals might help, too.
There is a hope that Max Watters will find his Championship shooting boots this season as well. Those behind the scenes acknowledge there is a real striker there, and a good finisher, and are waiting for him to click and prove it at this level. His chances won't be infinite, but while no striker has been signed he is the nailed-on starter.
Oliver Denham showed a neatness and calmness at centre-back, too, which earned him a senior Wales call-up, although he didn't get to make his debut in the end. Mark McGuinness had some very good matches but also some poor ones, especially as the season wore on. Those two will be better for their experiences last year, however with the arrival of Cedric Kipre they will likely need to bide their time.
While Joel Bagan's confidence must have been given a shot in the arm after his mini goalscoring streak last term, he, like McGuinness, just had a dip towards the end of the season. It'll be a big year for him, battling with Jamilu Collins for the left-back berth.
The optimism all football fans feel going into a new season is refreshing. The ultimate clean slate. After last season and a summer of major change, though, Cardiff fans will likely be tempering their expectations just a little and it might be wise to do so. But who knows? City might just spring a surprise at the start of the season, which would be most welcome after the three previous campaigns.
If Romaine Sawyers and Callum O'Dowda can channel the form they have showed earlier in their careers and in pre-season, they can be exciting additions. Ollie Tanner is a complete unknown and could be anything, but the sort of player he is means it will be exciting at times, just how often we see it remains to be seen. Ryan Allsop is a very solid goalkeeper signing, while Andy Rinomhota could be the key to knitting things together in the middle. Sheyi Ojo and Kipre have also looked encouraging this summer.
The re-signing of Joe Ralls was massive, both for the players and the fan base. He means a lot to Bluebirds supporters and, should he remain relatively injury-free, that fleck of familiarity in the middle of the park will perhaps go some way to serving as a settling tonic amid the root-and-branch changes.
There have been so many moving parts. So many ins and outs, so many names linked, signed or batted away. But it is all change and City supporters, when reflecting on the 12 months which has come before now, will hope that goes for the results on the pitch, too.
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