Steve Morison was excited about what Eli King could become the day he walked through the door as under-23s boss back in February 2020.
King has flown somewhat under the radar over the last two years as other youngsters grabbed the headlines owing to stellar displays and international call-ups.
But the 19-year-old Bluebirds midfielder is finally having his chance in the spotlight, having seen fellow academy graduates Mark Harris, Rubin Colwill, Isaak Davies and Joel Bagan all receive praise over the last 18 months or so.
King is the next cab off the rank, so to speak, in that regard.
He was handed his first-team debut in Mick McCarthy's final match in charge, a late cameo in the defeat by Middlesbrough, but shot into the wider public's consciousness when he was handed a starting berth against Liverpool in the FA Cup.
But he is no flash-in-the-pan talent, Morison insists. The manager has been a big admirer for the young Welshman for two years or more, not just for what he offers on the pitch, but for the extras he does around the training ground, too.
"I’ve been excited about Eli King since I first walked through the door. He is an excellent player," Morison said. "He has had a few knocks, but he has really found himself in terms of his size, attributes and quality.
"He is an excellent kid, really nice and a top, top professional.
"You’ll often see it, everyone will leave and he will be in there picking up all the bottles. He is that type of kid. He makes sure the ground is tidy.
"He is a top-drawer pro."
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King has knocked some senior professionals down the pecking order, it seems. The academy kid has been named on the bench in the last two games while Leandro Bacuna and Marlon Pack have been omitted from the matchday squads.
He also backed that Liverpool performance up with a decent outing against Coventry City in his first league start for the club.
And Morison believes King is receiving his just rewards for consistently impressing in and around the first-team squad in recent months.
"He has been involved because he deserves to be involved," Morison added.
"He didn’t know he was starting until I named the team an hour and a half before! I thought he was excellent and I thought he was excellent against Coventry.
"That Coventry team was one of the youngest we have put out in the last 10 or 12 years. He came off because he had cramp! That’s how far he pushed himself.
"I’m really pleased with him and he is one who, if I am here, he will be fully a part of what we are doing next year.
"And if he is slightly off because of the people we bring in (this summer), he could have a really good loan, a bit like Ryan Wintle and come back a different player.
"There are plans in place for every one of those young players and it’s just about me or someone else implementing them."
King himself has spoken of his shock after getting the nod to start up at Anfield just 20 minutes before the Bluebirds trotted out for their warm-up.
It was some way for the midfielder to announce himself in his first senior start for the club, in a glamour FA Cup tie against a team like Liverpool, and he certainly held his own in the 3-1 defeat.
"I was told about 20 minutes before the warm up!" King told the club's programme. "It was a surprise, and I wish I could have seen my reaction, but I felt prepared for it.
"I didn't really have too much time to think about the situation - I just went straight into the warm up and prepared for the game.
"The match itself was a little bit of a blue. It's hard to take everything in when you are playing, because you have to be so focused and the intensity of the game was another level.
"But the whole experience of having a lot of people watch the game, and having my family there, made it a really good day - especially now I've had some time to go back and process everything."
King, Colwill, Davies, Sam Bowen and other young talents have played together for a long time, many of whom have been at the club from as young as eight years old.
And King said that transition from youth football into the senior game has been made far easier by having his mates around him.
"It's good to break into the first team regardless, but when you look beside you and see other boys who have worked hard and developed like you have, it makes you want to do even better," he added.
"When you have people you know by your side, it helps make that step up from the under-23s to the first team a little easier.
"I'm really pleased to see other people my age make that step up and I love playing with them."
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