Erol on Anwar, Reading and Bristol Rovers

Manager Erol Bulut spoke to the press after Cardiff City’s latest pre-season win over Reading.

We'll start our write-up where the Gaffer finished his press conference, with a quote about new summer signing, Anwar El Ghazi, who joined the Bluebirds at midnight.

"Anwar brings quality," Erol said. "He knows the Championship and the Premier League. He is hungry to be back in football. We've talked to him for a long time. He can add to our system."

Looking at the fixture that was just played, the Gaffer added: “I’m satisfied with the game today and how the youngsters played. In a few stages, we didn’t look sharp, and from being under pressure we conceded a goal. These are small details that we can be better at, but we will learn from these details.

“We did a lot of positives things today too. We had a lot of possession, we generally controlled the game and tried to score goals, and we managed to do that twice. It’s always good to win before the season starts, and I’m happy we did that tonight.”

Both goals came from Callum Robinson, who has scored six goals in the runup to the new campaign, and the Gaffer is happy with how the forward has been performing.

“I think in pre-season he’s scored six goals, and I’m really happy with him. I hope he continues scoring goals, and I also hope that the new offensive parts can push and also score goals. Everybody has to push each other in order to get better. It’s a hard job to fight for that starting shirt, so they have to make it difficult for me.

“We had talks with Callum and everything was positive. It makes us happy that he’s in shape and scoring goals for us, and I hope he continues this way.”

One player who will be looking to push Robinson for that starting role will be new signing Wilfried Kanga, and Bulut is pleased to have the forward in.

“Last season, Wilfried was playing with Standard Liège and scored 13 goals,” Erol continued. “He showed that he can score goals in the Belgian League, and we are expecting him to score goals in this league and work hard for us. I hope he can deliver this season for Cardiff City, and I think he will be a big positive for this team.”

The manager also looked ahead to the Bluebirds’ final pre-season game against Bristol Rovers on Saturday.

“We have to prepare for all of pre-season, but it’s normal for the first eleven to start the final game of it. We will try to play that team against Bristol Rovers, but it may be plus or minus a couple of players due to injuries. We know some of our players won’t be fully fit and ready to play the 90 minutes yet, so we will see who can manage it, but we will have eleven players who are ready to play.”