The Pantomime Villain

Recent events at Cardiff City have sparked the BBC to label club owner, Vincent Tan as the 'Pantomime Villain.'

In the middle of December, Cardiff coach was shocked to find an email from Tan telling him to resign or else face getting the sack. The riff between Tan and Cardiff City manager Malky Mackay started after Tan publicly criticised the manager for announcing his intentions on buying 3 new players in the transfer window as he felt it was 'unfairly raising the expectations of the supporters.'

During the match against Liverpool on Saturday, Cardiff City supporters voiced their disgust at owner Vincent Tan, with chants of "Mackay in Tan out" ringing around Anfield. The Liverpool fans acknowledged the efforts of the Cardiff supporters with a round of applause. The support from the fans wasn't enough to save their beloved Cardiff City from a 3-1 defeat.

Mackay guided his Cardiff team to their first ever season in the premier league and has appealed for peace between the owner and himself, saying that this dispute could lead to his Cardiff side being relegated at the end of the season. There is sense in the Cardiff manager's words in that it couldn't of happened at a worse time with the January transfer window approaching. Having only scored 13 goals, it seems apparent that the club will need to recruit another striker, in order to bolster their attacking threat. Only Crystal Palace have scored less goals (12), while Sunderland have scored 13 too.

The Boxing Day results didn't do Cardiff any favours by losing 3-0 at home to Southampton as well as Sunderland, Crystal Palace and Fulham all winning. This leaves Cardiff lying precariously in 17th position, a single point clear of the relegation zone. As it stands, Tan has withdrawn his 'resign or be sacked' order against Mackay and he will remain in charge for the foreseeable future, but he himself is expecting to be given the boot before the New Year.

Before the season commenced, I predicted a 14-16th placed finish, but this is looking increasingly unlikely, especially with the recent events. With Mackay standing firm and refusing to walk, it is down to Vincent Tan to make ultimate decision regarding the future of their manager.