Cardiff City have agreed to sign former Queens Park Rangers forward Chris Willock on a free transfer, according to Football Insider.
The 26-year-old was officially released by QPR last month after his contract expired at Loftus Road. He was a key component of both Gareth Ainsworth’s and Martí Cifuentes’s plans as he made 39 appearances for the West London side in 2023/24, adding four goals and four assists to his tally.
Willock had been a mainstay in the R’s starting lineup since his arrival from Benfica as a free agent in 2020. He played a total of 144 matches for the club, scoring 20 times, and was notably a crucial part of Michael Beale’s team which looked a good bet to make the play offs during the 2022/23 season before the manager was poached by Rangers.
Now, though, after weeks of rumours, it seems Cardiff City have won the race to secure Willock’s signature for the upcoming Championship campaign. As per Football Insider, The Bluebirds have seen off competition from several other clubs to get the deal over the line.
Cardiff manager Erol Bulut, who has had plenty of speculation over his own future over the past few months, will be pleased to have got a new face in the door. The German boss told Wales Online this week: “The atmosphere is good. I think it will be much, much better when new players come in.”
City were in need of strengthening in attacking areas as Iké Ugbo topped their scoring charts with just 11 goals last term. The goal will undoubtedly be to close the 11-point gap to the top six in the new season and proven Championship quality such as Willock will only help that cause.
Willock, who made two appearances for Arsenal as a young player, will be hoping to hit the ground running and walk into a more stable environment than the yo-yo nature of QPR that he has become accustomed to over the last few years.
Writer’s View
Willock can sometimes lift a Championship game with a moment of magic that is required to tip the balance in favour of his team and has previously been considered on the brink of Premier League quality. He has perhaps just lacked the consistency to ever be considered as anything more than a second-tier operator. However, as his youth international experience and signature for Benfica earlier in his career show, he has real underlying talent.
Is Cardiff City the place for a struggling player to rebuild and show what he’s capable of? Recent years would probably tell you no but with a seemingly more secure feeling around the manager and club as a whole, this could be the year things start to click in the Welsh Capital. Willock will certainly be hoping so, otherwise he could well find himself stuck in a Championship rut similar to the club he has signed from.