It has already been a dramatic season for Cardiff City in the Championship with the club falling into a dire position under ex-head coach Paul Trollope as they plummeted towards the foot of the table.

But they now find themselves somewhat rejuvenated under new gaffer Neil Warnock.

The Bluebirds are still very much in a relegation fight as they hover precariously above the bottom three with a host of difficult fixtures coming up over the Christmas period before the January transfer window arrives.

This January will give Warnock the chance to bring in more of his own players after taking advantage of the free transfer market when he first joined to bring in the likes of Junior Hoilett, Marouane Chamakh, Sol Bamba and Keiran Richardson all within a week of his appointment.

However, as the prospect of incoming and outgoing transfers draws ever closer, there are a number of first team squad players in the City side that will be wanting to have more of an opportunity to show what they can do.

Here, Football League World writer Steve Day picks two players in the Bluebirds squad that he thinks should be pushing Warnock to give them more minutes on the pitch so they can prove themselves to the management and fans.

Frederic Gounongbe

Frederic Gounongbeg

Benin international striker Gounongbe arrived at the club with a majestic goal scoring record attached to his name.

35 goals in 71 games for Woluwe-Zaventem, 11 goals in 18 games for RWDM Brussels and 22 goals in 45 games for Westerlo shows that the man knows how to find the net.

Unfortunately, Gounongbe's performances and poor finishing for Cardiff so far have attracted huge criticism.

It is obvious he has struggled to adapt to the pace of the English game and he has looked far short of the prolific striker that the Bluebirds felt they had signed in the summer.

However, Warnock has openly revealed that Gounongbe has been the most deadly finisher in training and continues to impress with his sharper performances as he is becoming more accustomed to the demands of Championship football.

As the Bluebirds continue to struggle to hit the back of the net on a regular basis, the 20-goal-a-season striker they crave could be right under their noses but is just in need of some time and adjustment.

Any City fan will remember how poor Rudy Gestede was when he first broke into the side: a lesson could be there to be learned with his fellow countryman Gounongbe.

Emyr Huws

emyr-huws-manchester-city

There is a lot of mystery surrounding Wales international central midfielder Huws.

The 23-year-old joined the Bluebirds during the summer from Wigan for an undisclosed fee and his arrival was warmly welcomed by Cardiff fans who felt the club had signed one of the best up and coming youngsters in Welsh football.

Bizarrely, week-after-week, Huws found himself as bench fodder in a struggling Cardiff side.

On the rare occasions when he came on as substitute, he impressed but was then never considered for a start which left Cardiff fans baffled.

The appointment of Warnock led many to hope that Huws would be given more opportunity in the first team but that has not yet happened.

Injury has hampered the involvement of Huws recently but as the fixture list becomes congested it is clear that Warnock will not be able to rely on his first choice midfield every game so it is a prime opportunity for Huws to stake his claim.

If Huws is not given the chance to show what he can do over the next month or two then the Bluebirds are in danger of losing a potentially key midfield player over the January transfer window because a player of his quality is unlikely to settle for being back-up.

 

What do you think Cardiff fans? Are Gounongbe and Huws worthy of being given more of a chance by Warnock? Or are there two other players in the squad that deserve more game time? Let us know your thoughts below...