Cardiff City confirmed the signing of Leandro Bacuna from Reading for a fee understood to be around £4million. Neil Warnock was looking out for a midfielder and a full-back in the January transfer window and Leandro Bacuna will fit into both roles.
Leandro Bacuna featured 28 times for Reading in all competitions this season. The former Aston Villa man signed a 4-and-a-half-year deal with Cardiff City that will run until the summer of 2023.
Born in the Netherlands, the 27-year-old represented the Oranje at youth level but Bacuna he chose to play for the Curaçao national team. Bacuna made his senior debut for Groningen against PSV in the Eredivisie back in 2009. He joined Aston Villa in 2013 and took hold of the number 7 shirt. He was a mainstay on his debut season at Villa Park where he appeared 35 times for the Villains and scored 5 goals in the process.
After 4 seasons with Villa, Bacuna signed for Reading in the summer of 2017. In the Championship, he has scored and assisted 3 times each this season in 26 appearances and appears to be the right fit to solve Cardiff’s defensive problems this season.
After signing for the Bluebirds on Deadline Day, Bacuna was quoted as saying “A few weeks ago, I was made aware of some interest and it has all gone from there. I’m very happy and looking forward to getting started, Every game I play I give 100%, and I’ll be fighting hard to help our team. I’ve played against the manager and you can see he always wants to win. He is so passionate. It’s going to be great to work underneath him and hopefully he will push me on as a player.”
Cardiff are currently 18th in the Premier League table, just two points off safety. Neil Warnock’s side have the second worst defensive record in the league, conceding 46 goals in 25 games. Their attack hasn’t been any better either as they have only scored 22 times this season, only Huddersfield have scored less. The signing of Bacuna gives them an experienced option both in midfield and in defence.
With 284 senior career appearances, 85 of which have come in the Premier League, Bacuna isn’t short of experience at the top level. The Curaçao International will bring in leadership and experience to the Bluebirds and will be a big help in Cardiff City’s bid for survival in the English top flight.
