Cardiff confirm exit of Mackay

Oct 11, 2013 - 5:00 PM Cardiff City officials have confirmed Malky Mackay's longstanding assistant Iain Moody has left the Premier League club but insist they remain fully behind their manager.

After refusing to confirm several days of reports in the British press that Moody had left his post as head of recruitment, the club announced his exit on Friday.

They also announced that Alisher Apsalyamov, a 23-year-old from Kazakhstan, reported to be a friend of the son of Cardiff's Malaysian owner Vincent Tan, and with no known significant previous experience in football, had replaced Moody in an acting capacity.

"Iain is leaving the club with our thanks for his contribution," a statement issued by the Welsh club said.

"In the interim period, Alisher Apsalyamov has been appointed as Acting Head of Recruitment, focusing on gathering data on individual players.

"Ultimate recruitment decisions of course remain the domain of the manager and majority shareholder."

Tan added: "I have every faith in Malky and his team to lead us through the challenges of the Premier League.

"I have supported him in the past and will do so in the future for many years to come."

Apsalyamov joined the club in February but his name does not appear on a list of key staff members on the official website.

Tan took over Cardiff in 2010 and helped finance their promotion to the Premier League last season as the club returned to English football's top flight for the first time in more than 50 years.

But he also angered many Cardiff supporters by insisting the club change from its traditional blue kit to his 'lucky' colour of red.

Cardiff are currently 14th in the Premier League, a point in front of south Wales rivals Swansea.

Source: AAP