Erol pre-Swansea City | Squad update, Daland & the derby
Erol Bulut spoke to the press to preview Sunday’s South Wales derby.
The City boss began by giving an injury update on his squad.
“Aaron Ramsey will be with us. He had training on Wednesday and everything was fine. In the game [against Burnley], it looked really bad and that he twisted his ankle, but thankfully, it was not something serious. He can be with us on the weekend.
“For sure, it’s a boost. For this game, I don’t need to talk so much about the games that have been. It’s a derby, more than a derby, for us and for them. For my players, they have to be prepared for the game on Sunday.
“Joe Ralls, we are not sure. He had a problem with his hips and groin against Burnley. That was the reason why we had to change him. I hope he can train tomorrow with us, then the possibility will be higher that he will be with us.
“Callum O’Dowda and Calum Chambers are both ok. Anwar El Ghazi for now looks good and will be with us on the weekend. We will see how long we are going to use him.
“He trained before coming here, but it’s not the same when you train individually. He has trained for three weeks with us, so I think he can be available for at least 30 minutes. He is a quality player and can change the direction of the game. He could change the result, it’s important.
“Alex Robertson is doing well. We gave him 60 minutes against Bristol Rovers and there is a possibility that he can be with us over the weekend.”
City have added to the squad ahead of Sunday's fixture, with central defender Jesper Daland joining the Bluebirds from Cercle Brugge K.S.V.
Erol continued: "I think he is more than ready because just before he came, he had a league game and a game in Europe. He had six matches where he played 90 minutes, so he will be available for us.
"We were looking for him a long time ago. It was a plan for last January. We had our eyes on him and were targeting him. He is a quality player and he can play on the left and right side.
"Mostly, for Cercle Brugge, he played on the left side. He is good in duels and is exactly what we needed. He is 24 years old, so is a really good age and can play for many years for Cardiff City."
Sunday's opponents have amassed three points from their opening two matches, falling to a defeat to Middlesbrough and claiming a win over Preston North End.
The fixture will be Erol's fifth derby in charge of the Bluebirds, with three wins out of four last term.
“Last season, I had enough conversations with fans on the street and when I went out to restaurants," Erol added. "I know what this means to the fans, for the Club, for us. This is not only a derby.
“It’s a great derby. When I remember at home, the win against Swansea, it’s one of the biggest derbies. It’s always good to win them, it doesn’t matter how. You have to win it.
"We are analysing the opponent and they analyse us. We have to get our first goal. The first two games, we had chances, but we have to finalise them. No other game could be better than this game to change our fortunes."