Cardiff City: Erol Bulut provides Mark McGuinness transfer update amid Luton Town interest | OneFootball

The Bluebirds boss has given an update on Mark McGuinness, who continues to be courted by Luton Town

Cardiff City manager Erol Bulut has confirmed the club have received an offer for in-demand central defender Mark McGuinness amid interest from Luton Town and other undisclosed suitors, although a sale will not be sanctioned unless their asking price is met.

Bulut said as much in his press conference following Tuesday evening's impressive 2-0 EFL Cup victory over Bristol Rovers, in which McGuinness scored his side's opener, informing the press that the saga is still continuing heading into the final stages of the summer transfer window.

Newly-relegated outfit Luton Town are believed to be among the sides courting McGuinness as of late, but Cardiff have set an asking price in the region of £10 million, and it is not yet clear if their eight-figure valuation will be met.

Cardiff are under no immediate pressure to sell McGuinness, who agreed a new four-year contract with the club this time last year. The 23-year-old has made more than 80 appearances after joining from Arsenal in the summer of 2021, becoming an ever-present across the last year-and-a-half.

Erol Bulut issues Mark McGuinness latest amid Luton Town interest

When quizzed by the press on whether the interest in McGuinness remains, Bulut confirmed that the defender is still a wanted man and is not the only Cardiff player to be admired elsewhere, either.

Bulut said: "Interest is always there. Luton or other clubs. This is why he had so much interest. He is now a player of Cardiff City. He will continue in that way. If nothing comes we are pleased to have him here.

"For now yes. It's a free market. They can test. The player belongs to us, so we don't have any rush for this. The value of the player is this. When the club gets this value then the club will go forward.

"This has a time element, when I will say 'now, no', if I let a player go if I don't have someone on the market I can get. For now, the offers have to come in and then I think the board will make the decision about that.

"Yeah, I think [there is a concrete offer for McGuinness]. We are now on the level where everyone is talking about the transfer. [There] Should be something in that we are discussing right now.

"Of course, the interest is there. But not everyone can go. We have to stay with a base sometimes. Still, it's the value. But from now, everything that comes in, we have to think more carefully, because it's close to the end of the transfer period.

"The players we need now, we cannot say late on, 'Ah everyone is going, we cannot get anyone on the market.'

"With Macca, it's been like this for 10 days, everything is going up and down, but nothing is finalised. I am looking forward with Macca until something is finalised."

Luton Town will have to meet Cardiff City asking price to prise Mark McGuinness away

Cardiff have every right to drive up such a steep asking price for McGuinness, who is at a good age but possesses plenty of experience and has impressed in the Championship for the last few years.

They have even more scope to play hardball after cleverly tying him down to a fresh long-term deal, so there is no reason why they will let him leave for a fee inferior to their valuation.

It will be a test of the significance of Luton's interest, then, whether they decide to meet that or not. The Hatters are light in defence at this moment in time and would clearly benefit from additional reinforcements alongside the impressive Teden Mengi, and you do wonder if McGuinness could elevate to the next level in a side that really should finish inside the Championship's top six.

You could hardly blame McGuinness for wanting the move either, with Luton's chances of returning to the Premier League more likely than Cardiff's this season despite both teams falling to defeat in their opening encounters. But for any move to go through, Luton will have to do it on Cardiff's terms - and fast.

Bulut appears to be somewhat frustrated by the length of the saga, with Luton still evidently unsure on whether to meet Cardiff's asking price.

Once again, any such feeling from Bulut is justified as he will want security over his core players ahead of plans to challenge for play-off contention this term and Luton could run the risk of seeing Cardiff pull the plug on the deal if they fail to match their demands.