Just like last season, the January transfer window will be crucial for improving Cardiff City's chances of avoiding the drop to League One.
It's worrying that, for the second year in a row, they find themselves in a relegation scrap as we approach the mid-season transfer window, needing to nail their deals next month if they are to catapult themselves up the ladder and away from danger.
The prevailing narrative is that Cardiff likely have enough quality in their squad to stave off relegation for a second season running, but they cannot afford to rest on their laurels or leave anything to chance. The last thing Vincent Tan wants is a drop into English football's third tier.
Far bigger clubs than Cardiff have slipped into League One and struggled to get out. The financial implications would be crippling. It's simply unthinkable.
The Bluebirds brought in 17 players in the summer. It was a bold, if necessary, strategy. But it would have been fanciful to think that all of the new signings would simply hit the ground running, everything would click into place and City would rocket up the table and win promotion to the Premier League.
The foundations of a new squad are in place and, by and large, there are many positives to work on. But there is still room for improvement and Cardiff must use January to bolster their squad further for the final months of the season.
First on the list of priorities has to be a left-back. The injury to Jamilu Collins was devastating and could not be avoided. Cardiff, in fact, should be applauded for acting so quickly to bring Niels Nkounkou in on a season-long loan from Everton.
While Nkounkou has shown flashes of excitement going forward, he has left a lot to be desired defensively. He has been culpable for far too many goals conceded already. With goals for Cardiff at a premium, relinquishing them with such ease at the other end is unsustainable. Whether there is an option for Nkounkou to return to Everton or not, City need strengthening in that position. Or, at the very least, Callum O'Dowda needs to be deployed there as a stop-gap for the rest of the season.
While it's an expensive commodity, the squad is crying out for more creativity. They could go down the route of a Tommy Doyle-like player, who was a revolution last year when he joined on loan from Manchester City. He added so much to City's attack and got them on the front foot while displaying so much industry in defence.
One suspects Romaine Sawyers was brought in to fill some of the creative burden left by Doyle's return to Man City, but it hasn't worked out as of yet. He covers nowhere near the distance Doyle did off the ball, either, which leaves Cardiff lacking in both departments.
Rubin Colwill's return to fitness is promising and fans are right to be encouraged by that. But it should also be remembered that this 20-year-old kid is still finding his feet at this level and has really struggled with injuries over the last year or so. He needs help and cannot be expected to shoulder the brunt of all the creativity and expectation, no matter what his potential is perceived to be.
Further forward, Cardiff probably need another winger and another striker. They need more firepower up front. They need goals.
Callum Robinson looks a good signing at this level. Kion Etete has shown flashes in the last two games of what Cardiff saw in him when they picked him up from Spurs. Jaden Philogene was hitting some real form before his sports hernia injury was seen to, let's hope he can regain some form when he returns to training this week.
Welsh duo Mark Harris and Isaak Davies, both wingers and strikers, offer Cardiff something going forward, but goals have been few and far between for those two in their relatively fledgling Championship careers. They are, perhaps, presently viewed as more capable wingers than strikers.
Sheyi Ojo has flattered to deceive for the most part, with his end product sorely lacking in the first half of this season. Gavin Whyte has been solid, steady and is a good squad option. Whether he is going to contribute to upwards of 10 goals a season at this level is still a question. Although, to his credit, he did that last year in League One with Oxford United.
O'Dowda looks more and more like a left-back/left wing-back option with the concerns over Nkounkou, so that draws away another wing option, too.
Max Watters had his chances and has simply not taken them. There is clearly a talented footballer in there somewhere, but for whatever reason it just hasn't clicked with the Bluebirds. He might be a player who has to leave, on loan or permanently, in the new year.
A Premier League loan for a winger and a striker would be ideal. We saw what qualities Philogene has, with his trickery and creativity, while Jordan Hugill proved to be a solid forward signing last season. Someone of his ilk would be a welcome addition to add competition to Etete and Robinson. A striker for certain, a winger may be more of a luxury addition.
As for outgoings to balance the books? Well, there are a couple who could be in contention, along with Watters.
Ollie Tanner appears to be a prime candidate for a League One or League Two loan. He probably hasn't been involved with the first team as much as he would have liked, but looked decent against Aston Villa in Peter Whittingham's Memorial Match. He would certainly benefit from a loan.
Ollie Denham is back training and could be in line for a loan away next month. The centre-back could go to an EFL club, like James Connolly last year or Mark McGuinness this season, and really learn his trade in the rough and tumble of men's league football.
With Perry Ng, Cedric Kipre, Jack Simpson and Curtis Nelson all vying for a couple of spots, and Sean Morrison's situation still not yet resolved, it seems a bit of a crowded house. The recent criticism of Nelson has been a little unfair, at least in my view, and I believe him to be a better centre-back than most give him credit for, but no one could begrudge him if he wanted to get some game-time elsewhere in the second half of the season. He's not used to warming the bench wherever he has played.
If a left-back is brought in, and O'Dowda is seen as an option there as well, Joel Bagan could go out and get some minutes. If a left-back isn't signed, Bagan would need to stay put and provide competition.
Rohan Luthra is an option for a loan away, too. He is currently third-choice goalkeeper and doesn't look like getting a sniff. Perhaps a loan to a fellow Welsh club, maybe in the Cymru Premier, just to expose him to senior football, might be of use. Cardiff could also strike a month-by-month loan deal then, too, should he need to be recalled if one of the first-choice keepers, Ryan Allsop or Jak Alnwick, get injured.
Tom Sang and Vontae Campbell are other potential options. Both are playing second fiddle to Mahlon Romeo, who has been excellent this season, for that right-back berth, while Sang is also banging on the door to get into the midfield. But with Joe Ralls, Ryan Wintle, Andy Rinomhota, Romaine Sawyers and Rubin Colwill already options in there, and Ebou Adams set to return in January, it's a hotly-contested area of the squad.
Cardiff might look to offer a loan to one and keep the other to cover themselves should Romeo suffer any injuries in the coming months.
So, I guess the verdict is Cardiff need to bring in three or four and potentially move five or six out, mainly on loan. If that is the case, then it's shaping up to be a similar month to January 2021 and Cardiff will hope it's just as successful.
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