Cardiff City set to win race for 22-year-old | OneFootball

The midfielder is set to sign for the Bluebirds

Cardiff City are set to complete a loan move for Ajax midfielder, Sivert Mannsverk.

That is according to a fresh report from Dutch news outlet, De Telegraaf, who state that the Bluebirds have agreed a short-term deal for the Norwegian youth international.

Omer Riza's side have been linked with a number of exciting prospects throughout this winter transfer window, as they look to stave off relegation into League One for the first time since 2003, which has included Peterborough United's Ricky-Jade Jones, Drogheda United's Warren Davis and Liverpool starlet, Jayden Danns.

Meanwhile, the club have also taken a continental approach within their transfer strategy, having recently completed the signing of Yousef Salech from Swedish outfit, Sirius, for a reported fee of between £3-4m.

And, after defeating Derby County by two goals to one at the Cardiff City Stadium on Saturday afternoon in a pivotal encounter, it is believed that Riza is set to make his second addition of the window, with Deadline Day just nine days away.

Cardiff City agree loan switch for Ajax's Sivert Mannsverk

It has been reported by Dutch news outlet, De Telegraaf, that the South Wales side have agreed a six-month loan deal for Mannsverk with the Eredivisie giants, who currently find themselves second in the table behind PSV Eindhoven.

The 22-year-old has been with the Amsterdam outfit since the summer of 2023 after joining from Molde FK, where he made 87 appearances after initially coming through the academy of Sogndal.

After moving to the Johan Cruyff Arena, Mannsverk made 25 appearances in all domestic and European competitions throughout an injury-ravaged season, with his solitary goal contribution coming against Bodo/Glimt in the UEFA Europa Conference League, before being sent off in the second leg of Ajax's Round of 16 defeat to Aston Villa at Villa Park last March.

This season has also been a tale of misfortune for the Norwegian, having suffered an ankle injury at the beginning of the campaign which kept him sidelined for five months after featuring in the opening two Eredivisie encounters against Heerenveen and NAC Breda.

Mannsverk was recently named on the substitutes bench by Francesco Farioli in a 2-1 success over RKC Waalwijk, before being omitted against Heerenveen on January 19th.

The fresh report states that the loan move is being sanctioned as the defensive-minded midfielder doesn't feature in the Italian's plans at present, despite having three-and-a-half years left on his contract, whilst Cardiff have also fended off competition from 2.Bundesliga outfit, FC Nurnberg for his services.

Sivert Mannsverk offers Cardiff City a different short-term dimension

It has been made clear through rumours and the addition of 23-year-old Salech that Cardiff are looking to potentially bring the average age of their squad down, with estimated figures stating the Bluebirds have the fifth-oldest squad in that regard with a number of 26.7.

Riza has plenty of options at the base of his midfield, with the versatile Calum Chambers and Joe Ralls featuring alongside each other in the crucial win over Paul Warne's side this afternoon.

However, Mannsverk would offer much more of a youthful dimension, and it is clear that a move is likely to benefit all parties, especially the midfielder, as he looks to send a message to the aforementioned Farioli after returning to full fitness.

Of course, the Championship and Eredivisie offer similar and differing challenges, and it will be intriguing to see how the Ajax man's attributes can align with the rest of a squad that has gone unbeaten in their last seven league games.

During his 13 league appearances last term, Mannsverk tallied an average of 56.2 touches per game and recorded strong defensive metrics such as 3.5 recoveries and being dribbled past just 0.4 times per game, and that combative nature will certainly be needed in the remaining 17 games of the season.