Cardiff City's surprise package has been the player they've been crying out for

When shiny new attacking players waltz into the building during a mid-season transfer window, it's quite easy for others to slip under the radar. That has perhaps been the case with Ryan Wintle at Cardiff City.

While praise has been warranted for the classy Manchester City loanee Tommy Doyle, the lightning-fast, marauding wing-back Cody Drameh and Premier League striker Jordan Hugill, the return of Wintle from his loan at Blackpool has been as positive a move as any other in January.

He arrived with little fanfare back in the summer. He was on a free transfer after leaving a League One club — Crewe Alexandra — and was added to a midfield stable which was already incredibly-well stocked. With Mick McCarthy clearly having favourites in the middle of the park, it was difficult to get excited about the 24-year-old moving to south Wales.

There were few complaints, really, when he was sent on loan to Blackpool in the summer. In fact, it led many to question why Cardiff had even signed him in the first place, given he was so far down the pecking order, but McCarthy insisted he was one for the future. Bluebirds supporters were sceptical, to say the least.

But from day one he earned rave reviews up at Bloomfield Road. Indeed, when the January window was coming around, the talk among Seasiders was whether they would be able to take advantage of his vulnerable position within Cardiff's squad in order to sign him on a permanent basis, in the winter or in the upcoming summer window.

Steve Morison, however, had other ideas. For all the positive work Morison and the recruitment team did in the January window, Wintle's recall has to be right up there with one of the better moves.

The player's return and subsequent integration into the