"Quite an easy decision" - Cardiff City urged to set out big Joe Ralls contract ultimatum | OneFootball

FLW's Cardiff City fan pundit has discussed the long-term future of captain Joe Ralls, who is out of contract this summer

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Cardiff City are poised to face a number of key decisions in the coming weeks and months, as several players approach the conclusions of their current contracts.

At the time of writing, no less than seven players are set to find themselves out of contract in the Welsh capital come June.

Admittedly, straightforward decisions are likely to be made on the likes of Jamilu Collins, Yakou Meite and Anwar El Ghazi, the latter of whom penned a one-year contract to return to English football last summer after spending a year out of the game amid a well-documented legal battle with German side Mainz, having previously starred for Aston Villa, but has flattered to deceive with the Bluebirds.

However, Dimitros Goutas, Aaron Ramsey, Andy Rinomhota and long-serving club captain Joe Ralls, who has spent his entire career at Cardiff, are all soon to be out of contract too.

Ralls' future appears uncertain at this moment in time. The 31-year-old signed a new one-year contract last season, which gave the club an option to extend his terms by a further year based upon meeting a certain appearances threshold.

However, Ralls, who has made just 19 Championship appearances this term, is now unlikely to feature again this season after being struck down by a calf injury, which has reportedly prevented him from meeting the threshold, and it's not yet clear whether the relegation-threatened outfit will seek to renew his deal.

Cardiff City encouraged to demand contract ultimatum to Joe Ralls

FLW spoke with our resident Bluebirds fan pundit, Matt Hall, to ask whether he believes Cardiff should consider offering Ralls a new deal, or if it is now time to part ways with the experienced midfielder.

In Matt's view, Ralls is no longer of the standard to be a regular fixture in a side he wants to be more ambitious and compete higher up the league table, having spent the entirety of the current campaign - and their third in four years - battling against relegation to League One.

That's why Matt has proposed an ultimatum to Ralls, giving the skipper the option of staying on for a further year in a significantly-reduced role or looking elsewhere for regular football for the first time in his career.

"It's a very difficult one," Matt told FLW.

"A one-year trigger, I don't think that can happen, first and foremost, because he hasn't met the appearances. We're going to have to re-negotiate with him.

"I wouldn't consider anything longer than a one-year. But it's a difficult toss-up because we've got a very young team coming up, our average age on the [last] weekend [at home to Sheffield Wednesday] was 24 and midfield is one of the youngest parts of our team.

"You've got him and Aaron Ramsey injured and out of contract, I think one has to go - maybe both. You can't keep both.

"Ramsey has the option of going into the coaching staff because he's very much keen on that, with Ralls it's not so clear if that's an ambition for him. At least, he hasn't put in the groundwork as much as Ramsey has for it.

"If you strip away leadership and the intangibles, it would be quite an easy decision. Quality-wise, he is probably one of our weaker midfielders and I just don't feel our midfield is quite as good when he's in it.

"Technically, I think he's quite poor in modern football, a world where so much is demanded of them in short spaces. But he always seems to get drafted in when we're in the mire, and the ambition should just be to rise above that.

"I just don't think he would play very much. It would be up to him, would he want to stay here for the rest of his career? Because ultimately I don't see him playing very much, it would be an off-the-pitch role. Would he be comfortable doing that? Or would he like to go back out there and spend his final years playing, in which case it would be a bit of a mutual decision?

"But if it was up to me, I would give him that ultimatum. One-year deal, maybe keep it rolling, but not playing much in this team. You may have Ralls in a 10-15 minute cameo to close out a game, but not much more than that.

"If he doesn't like it, then that's fine. Don't make it toxic or turn anything bad, just shake hands, move on, testimonial, always keep things open to him and maybe offer some sort of role with the youth academy if he would like it.

"I would lean more towards parting ways."

Cardiff City will miss Joe Ralls' leadership in relegation dogfight

Although other midfielders such as Alex Robertson, Calum Chambers and even David Turnbull may possess more technical gifts than the industrious Ralls, there is no understating the value of his, as Matt puts it, "intangibles" in light of the situation Cardiff are currently in.

The Bluebirds are in a total dogfight to retain their Championship status and would benefit from being able to lean in on Ralls' experience, nous, leadership and ability to work doggedly in the middle of the park.

Matt is right to suggest Cardiff should have their standards set higher next term, and that's the factor that could just dictate his future in South Wales, but right here right now, his absence represents a huge blow.