Why Cohen Bramall could solve a key issue for Cardiff City moving forward

According to claims from Football Insider, as cited by the Wales Online, Cardiff City have been credited with an interest in Cohen Bramall, who currently plies his trade with Colchester United in League Two. 

Football Insider (h/t Wales Online) understands that the 23-year-old left-back has been identified as a potential transfer target by Bluebirds boss Neil Harris, who has highlighted the full-back department as an area that requires some investment in January. 

Bramall has caught the eye with his consistently impressive displays at Colchester United in the fourth-tier this season, playing a key role in the U’s surge for the playoffs. The left-back has proven himself to be an influential creative outlet down the left-hand side of the pitch, scoring once and laying on a further three assists in 16 League Two appearances. 

The Crewe-born defender played for a number of non-league clubs, including Kidsgrove Athletic, Nantwich Town, Market Drayton Town and Hednesford Town, before being plucked out by Arsenal following a successful trial in North London. 

However, he struggled to make a first-team breakthrough at Arsenal and was shipped out on loan at Birmingham City in the Championship to further his development. Despite initially making a positive impression on his loan stint at St. Andrew’s, Bramall failed to hold on to his starting place and clocked up only 8 appearances before returning to the Gunners.

The 23-year-old signed a two-year deal with Colchester this past summer following the expiry of his contract in North London and he has since made significant strides towards proving his mettle in the Football League system. 

To put things into perspective, Cohen Bramall remains pretty much an unproven talent at the Championship level but his talent and potential in League Two have been there for everybody to see, and Cardiff City completing a move for the 23-year-old could be a shrewd piece of business.

Harris’ interest in bolstering the left-back department certainly makes a lot of sense, given that undisputed first-choice Joe Bennett has had very little competition for his place in the team. Consequently, the 29-year-old has looked a bit jaded and off-the-pace in a few games due to his workload, having started 24 out of the Bluebirds’ 26 league fixtures so far this term.

Jazz Richards has returned from his spell on the sidelines to give Bennett some breathing space but the Welsh international has struggled to hit top-gear following his injury lay-off. Plus, it is a no-brainer that the 28-year-old is better suited to playing as a right-back, owing to his right-footed nature as a defender. 

Greg Cunningham, who was loaned out to Blackburn Rovers this past summer, is very much capable of playing as the understudy to Bennett but the Irishman’s future in South Wales remains up in the air. 

Recalling him in January could have solved a nagging issue in a key area of the pitch for Harris but that is no longer a possibility, with Cunningham set to miss several months due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury. 

Joel Bagan, of course, is an exciting young prospect coming through Cardiff’s age-group ranks but the 18-year-old hasn’t really been in the first-team mix and still requires a lot of time to mature into a player capable of playing a significant role in the Championship. 

Verdict

To that end, Cardiff City can certainly do with another left-back in their ranks and Cohen Bramall could possibly increase competition for places.

The 23-year-old needs to prove himself at the Championship level after indifferent spells at Arsenal and Birmingham City.

As per whoscored, the ex-Arsenal man has averaged rages 1.3 crosses, 1.3 key passes, 0.8 tackles and 0.8 interceptions, numbers which show that he is more than capable of doing a job at both ends of the pitch. Plus, Bramall still has plenty of room for development at 23 and any outlay in the market for his services could be well worth it. 

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All in all, Cardiff City completing a move for Cohen Bramall before the January deadline could pay off handsomely for them in the coming days.