Brian Barry-Murphy interview: Cardiff boss discusses how he navigated the club to the top of League One without a raft of signings | Football news

The January transfer window is open and clubs are looking for new players. But all is quiet in Cardiff.

First, the transfer ban exists after the group accounts have not been transferred due to administrative delays. But still, do the Bluebirds need to be busy?

Brian Barry-Murphy’s side are top of League One and while they have a new goalkeeper in Everton’s Harry Tryer coming in once the embargo is lifted, more cover is needed for the full-backs – the winter window could be similar to the summer where fewer signings are made.

“Yeah, it was very quiet,” Barry-Murphy said Sky Sports remembering his first window in Cardiff.

“We just focused on the players we had at the club and we believe in them and nothing has changed. Our belief in those players has grown a lot because of what they have done.”

Despite widespread sales due to relegation from the Championship, Cardiff have only signed three players – two were loan deals for goalkeeper Nathan Trott and Chelsea’s Omari Kellyman, while Gabriel Osho was the only permanent signing.

In the space of those who left, Barry-Murphy had faith in the young talent of this club. Players such as Joel Colwill, Ronan Kpakio and Dylan Lawlor have been included in the first team and have become an integral part of the team.

“We had a lot of players who obviously haven’t played much in league football,” said the Cardiff manager. “So for these guys, the joy from my point of view was to give them a chance to play and see how well they can do and how quickly they can improve.

“Obviously, they’re progressing at a rapid pace in terms of how good they are. We’re very pleased with that.

“We’re really focused on the players we have here, we’re trying to protect the ones we want to stay with for a long time. But if we can improve the squad to a significant degree in certain areas, we’ll try to do that if it’s allowed.”

Relying on youth is a bold policy in League One, especially in the top flight – but even more so for a young coach himself in his first four-year head coaching role.

Ignoring the summer window, the young Irish coach had to rely on his own footballing philosophy – and convince those above him that he was the right man to take the team forward.

“Vincent is very blunt so I’m very clear about what he wants,” said Barry-Murphy. “He is interested in getting the team back to where he believes it should be and my job is to try to make it happen.

“So, I can deliver or something… it’s great to keep the big bosses happy!”

But Barry-Murphy was more than ready for a job where he would develop young people. This is the coach who made the likes of Cole Palmer, Morgan Rogers and Oscar Bobb fit for Manchester City’s first team in his role as the club’s Elite Development coach.

“I think it’s the same,” the Cardiff boss said of how bringing Cardiff’s young players into League One is different to dealing with the likes of Palmer and Rogers.

“Those players like Cole Palmer and Morgan Rogers are hungry and have the same desire to do it every day because they know that the more they train, the better they get.

“No one expected Rogers to do what he did but he was eager to do it – and we have players like that here. Ruben Colwill is the same, Ronan, Dylan too. Alex Robertson was with those guys at Man City and now he’s doing the same thing.

“You can see the connection between that food and that hunger and when it is there, it is very difficult to stop the development and that is why they have such momentum.

“And that rubs off on the older players. In the same way that the older players mentor the younger players and take care of them, I think the energy of the younger players and the drive to improve can fuel the fire in the older players as well. It makes them more competitive with each other which makes for a better team.”

Barry-Murphy coached Palmer and Rogers in youth football – and there is a big difference between preparing them for that type of football, and preparing others for the pressure of League One, where points are on the line.

“You have to be very forgiving because the players have never faced the difficulties of League One before,” said Barry-Murphy.

“They will go to certain games against certain opponents and they want to face the challenge they face. But the most exciting thing is when you have a situation where Dylan, Ruben or Ronan have a game where they don’t play as well as they want to.

“And if you can show them why and then take it back to the training ground and try to make it better the next time they run into that situation, that’s real progress and you get that buy-in from them that drives everything forward.

“What surprised me was the determination and courage of the players to try anything and put themselves in a position to try to be an aggressive team individually and as a group that will face anyone.

“We played against Chelsea in that Carabao Cup game and I’ve been in our players’ shoes – where you try to be aggressive and press too hard and it’s easy to step back and think: what if we get embarrassed here? What if it doesn’t look good?

“The players were aggressive in everything they did and we tried to do that in every single game and some games worked really well and some games didn’t. But as long as we keep trying to put our best foot forward at all times, I think we’ll be fine and we’ll be a really fun team to watch.

“And the fans really responded to that because they drive it based on their strength and the team. The numbers we bring to the away games have to be seen to be believed. We sell out every away game and the support of the team is amazing.”

So how will Cardiff’s young side approach their biggest games of the season, which come Saturday at Bradford, live on Sky Sports?

The Bluebirds are six points clear of Saturday’s opponents, who sit in third place. But the Bantams game in hand makes it a mixed game.

Barry-Murphy also has to overcome a slight dip in away form after three games without a win on the road, which included defeat to rivals Lincoln. Look deeper, and Cardiff’s numbers are in stark contrast to their home form.

But Barry-Murphy offers a different perspective. “When I arrived for the first time in August, they told me that we will not win the game at home and the home form has been difficult for a long time,” he said. “So the players did very well to change that.

“I’m very happy with the away form and the way I played and it’s clear that I’m trying to make the players ready for all the different situations and challenges they face.

“We played against Bradford in the same home game and we couldn’t compete with them. Now we get a chance on Saturday to try to show that we have improved.”

Watch Bradford vs Cardiff live on Sky Sports+ this weekend, from 12.30pm.