Brian Barry-Murphy signed a contract extension as Cardiff boss to 2029 earlier this summer [Huw Evans Picture Agency] Head coach Brian Barry-Murphy says Cardiff City will try to prove the doubters wrong after some pundits tipped them to struggle on their return to the Championship. Barry-Murphy says Cardiff feel they can "surprise some people" in the second tier after finishing runners-up in League One in 2025-26. The 48-year-old would not be drawn on where he thinks the Bluebirds can finish in the Championship, but suggested bookmakers and pundits are wrong to write them off as possible relegation candidates. "We saw a lot of predictions this week which put us in the bottom two or bottom three - it's not a problem for us to have predictions like that, but we'll be looking to prove them wrong," said Barry-Murphy. "We're under no illusions about how difficult the season is going to be - we're not naive, we're aware of the powerhouse teams we're going to face. "But the size of the challenge improves the size of our excitement. The bigger the challenge, the more we look forward to it."
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Asked what would constitute a successful season for his side, Barry-Murphy said: "We don't know. I think one of the beauties of this season is that, for a lot of us, we're going into the unknown. "Our feeling is that we can surprise a lot of people. We have a real hunger and appetite to improve on what we did last season." Barry-Murphy is preparing for a blockbuster start to the campaign, with Welsh rivals Wrexham at the Cardiff City Stadium for a south-north derby on 17 August. The former Manchester City academy coach says he is unsure whether any more new signings will be completed ahead of Wrexham's visit, with Lincoln City midfielder Jack Moylan still the only outfield player recruited by Cardiff this summer. "I don't think so," said Barry-Murphy when asked if Cardiff were close to a new signing. "If you start anticipating timings or what may or may not happen, you just waste a lot of your time and your energy. "Our focus is purely on the game on Monday and making sure that anything that could or maybe would distract us, doesn't." Barry-Murphy said injured Wales forward Rubin Colwill could return for Wrexham's visit, but fellow international Dylan Lawlor is unlikely to be fit to face the Red Dragons.