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Neil Warnock: Manager leaves Cardiff City after three years

Last updated on .From the section Cardiffcomments444

Neil Warnock led Cardiff to Premier League promotion at the end of the 2017-18 season
Neil Warnock led Cardiff to Premier League promotion at the end of the 2017-18 season

Cardiff City have parted company with manager Neil Warnock.

The 70-year-old was in the final year of his contract at the Championship side and has said he would not carry on beyond the end of this season.

He was appointed in October 2016 and leaves with Cardiff 14th in the table after Sunday's loss to Bristol City.

"I am leaving my beloved Bluebirds after over three years of which have been some of the best days in my long football career," Warnock said.

"It is a shared belief that this is the right time for a new voice as we believe this squad of players is more than capable of getting success."

Cardiff have begun the search for a replacement and an announcement "will be made in due course".

Warnock, who has been in management since 1980, leaves the Bluebirds after 144 games in charge, with 59 wins, 29 draws and 56 defeats.

In his second season with Cardiff he guided them to promotion to the Premier League in the 2017-18 campaign.

It was a record eighth promotion campaign for Warnock as a manager, although they were relegated after just one season in the top flight.

Cardiff City chairman Mehmet Dalman said: "On behalf of Cardiff City Football Club, I thank Neil for his invaluable contribution to the future of this great club.

"He not only gained promotion but played a pivotal role in uniting the fans and the club. I am personally upset by his departure and wish him the very best for the future."

As well as thanking the Cardiff hierarchy, staff, players and fans, Warnock reserved special praise for the support of Dalman.

"I would especially like to thank Mehmet Dalman whom I have said many times has been one of the best chairman I have had the privilege to work for," Warnock added.

"His support has been immense, especially in 2019 which for many reasons both on and off the field has been the most challenging period both emotionally and physically that I have ever encountered."

Warnock said the death of striker Emiliano Sala, after the plane he was travelling in crashed in January, had been "by far the most difficult week in my career".

Analysis - 'Warnock a manager with Cardiff DNA'

BBC Sport Wales football correspondent Rob Phillips

Neil Warnock was exactly the right man for Cardiff City - his whole DNA suited that of the club.

The fans will not quickly forget his achievement of turning the club from being relegation candidates when he joined, to surprise promotion achievers the following season.

For that reason, Cardiff City fans will fondly recall Warnock's part in the club's history.

But it is fair to say Warnock never truly took to the Premier League, the cut and thrust of the Championship had always been more to his taste.

His statement is revealing in that he talks about the physical and emotional strain of 2019 being the "most challenging" he had ever encountered, when the club was consumed by the Emiliano Sala tragedy.

He will leave a huge hole at Cardiff, who need evolution rather than revolution now to move on from the sometimes derided Warnock football style.

There will be much work to do for the successor and as ever the next choice will be crucial, with Millwall's Neil Harris - a former Cardiff player - already among the favourites and Newport County's Michael Flynn boasting an eye-catching CV just down the road.

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444 comments

  • Comment posted by Andy27, at 20:00 11 Nov 2019

    Whatever you think of Neil, he can look back on a successful managerial career. He achieved eight promotions, more than any other Manager. I know he wasn't everyone's cup of tea, especially if you took him too seriously, but he was always entertaining and the game sadly lacks characters like him.

  • Comment posted by User0564660836, at 19:44 11 Nov 2019

    Dear Long_Range_Sniper,
    Not a Cardiff fan but if you are going to call a man a loser, at least spell your insult correctly, you loser.
    Cheers.

  • Comment posted by pantherfreddietom, at 20:00 11 Nov 2019

    29 simonk

    I am not a fan of Neil Warnock but it is untrue to state that he never achieved anything. Whilst he may not have won trophies he has taken a number of clubs beyond what would usually be expected of them. A very affable personality when things are going his way and a right moaner when they are not (so not a lot different to many managers).

  • Comment posted by Johnny Englander, at 19:45 11 Nov 2019

    Happy retirement Mr Warnock

  • Comment posted by D1679257923700, at 19:57 11 Nov 2019

    He's never managed my club but he's entertained me from afar never a dull moment but it's probably time to put your feet up and join the millions of us shout obscenities at the VAR officials 😠

    Also those slagging him off for his outbursts I guess your so prim and proper and have never ranted when you under pressure

  • Comment posted by AceModFace, at 20:59 11 Nov 2019

    Met him once; he used to stay at the hotel in Cornwall where I worked, when the footy season finished....bloody nice bloke, respectful and polite. I hope he enjoys a well earned retirement :)

  • Comment posted by Eddy, at 19:58 11 Nov 2019

    29 you Should have studied his promotion record before commenting, save you looking foolish

  • Comment posted by Bazforth, at 19:43 11 Nov 2019

    Will go down as a true City legend, sad to see him go, but grateful for the timing. Time now though for a change of ethos and a more attractive style of football. Thankyou Neil, forever a Bluebird.

  • Comment posted by Michael Green, at 19:53 11 Nov 2019

    @7 "out of his depth in EPL"
    Very unfair - more like out of his depth with the club's financial clout.
    Not sure he had any money at any club he managed, so we'll never know his full capability.
    Mind you - some cracking post match interviews, always honest (well usually) and very entertaining, more so than some of the robot managers nowadays.

  • Comment posted by Diogeues, at 19:45 11 Nov 2019

    @1 loser. You and your spelling.

  • Comment posted by KDCP1, at 21:59 11 Nov 2019

    Palace fan here. Warnock is a manager you hate until he manages your club and you realise what a really good manager he is, especially at Championship level. A true football man to the core and you have to admire someone who still has the passion to be a football manager in their 70's and given all that has happened this year I totally understand why he is walking away. Good luck Neil!

  • Comment posted by D1679679023099, at 19:55 11 Nov 2019

    Did a great job at Cardiff, enjoy your retirement Mr Warnock...... shame he wasn't backed during the Summer...... where did all the money go Tan???

  • Comment posted by Jamie_B, at 20:07 11 Nov 2019

    He handled the Sala situation with great class. Unlike the rest of Cardiff management.

  • Comment posted by Forevered, at 20:26 11 Nov 2019

    The last of a dying breed. As polarising as he was entertaining.

    Love him or hate him, in an age of snowflakes, at least he had the danglers to speak his mind.

    As a manager, you can't ignore his achievements.

  • Comment posted by D1710594041289, at 21:46 11 Nov 2019

    If it hadnt been for that tragic plane crash, Sala's goals may well have kept city up and kept Warnock in a job. That disaster must have had a huge effect on everyone at the club. Maybe it just knocked the stuffing out of Neil, hard to recover from such a traumatic event at his age. Good luck for the future Mr. maybe time to put your feet up. Did your best for all your clubs, no man can do more.

  • Comment posted by A_Hawke, at 19:52 11 Nov 2019

    Quality manager and quality guy. The article is misrepresentitive claiming he preferred the Championship. Had he been given half the chances and transfer funds so many of these foreign nobodies have had I feel sure he'd have enjoyed further success in the upper echelons of the Premier League. Sorry to see you go Neil but hope you'll be active in the media. Chelsea fan.

  • Comment posted by graham radford, at 19:52 11 Nov 2019

    A real character, controversial at times, generally said what a lot of people felt and would like to have said. His book is a great read and his early years and his football career maybe set out his beliefs he has. Happy retirement to your beloved Cornwall or maybe Scotland.

  • Comment posted by basil brush, at 20:22 11 Nov 2019

    Life long Cardiff fan here, supporting the club through thick and thin for the past 45 years. Bearing in mind some of what we've had to put up with the last 3 years with Neil in charge has been a fantastic journey. No doubt he divides opinion but, frankly, some of the garbage posted here by some of the keyboard warriors is truly pathetic. Anyway, thanks for the memories Neil, enjoy retirement.

  • Comment posted by dutchblade, at 20:54 11 Nov 2019

    How can you troll blame Warnock for the Sala you are idiots !!!
    It wasn't his money,it wasn't his plane
    and Warnock doesn't pay players insurance !!
    Warnock is guilty of nothing !!!
    Let Sala and Warnock rest in peace !!!

  • Comment posted by Cam, at 20:52 11 Nov 2019

    Impartial Wolves fan here -

    Proud club Cardiff, proud manager Warnock. Was great seeing Neil lift that club from the doldrums.

    Nothing lasts forever, so good luck Bluebirds with the next appointment and good luck Warnock on your next chapter too.

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