Bluebirds eye strike duo

Cardiff bid for Henderson and King

By Chris Burton   Last updated: 20th July 2008

Marlon King Wigan

King: Cardiff target

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Dave Jones has confirmed that Cardiff have tabled bids for Watford's Darius Henderson and Wigan's Marlon King.

The Bluebirds are keen to boost their firepower ahead of the upcoming campaign, with a new striker having been their top priority since the 2007/08 season came to a close.

Unfortunately for Jones his efforts have so far been in vain, with Marcus Bent opting to join Championship rivals Birmingham and Scotland international Kris Boyd unable to be tempted away from Rangers.

With Sheffield United also understood to be in the race for Henderson's signature Jones admits that he may miss out again, while King's wages may prove to be to be a sticking point in any potential switch from the top flight Latics.

Impact

"We made a bid for Henderson but the price went too high," Jones told Wales on Sunday.

"We are also keen on Marlon King, but we simply can't afford the fee plus his Premiership-level wages.

"But we will get the players we need. There are still plenty of quality strikers on our list.

"We don't have a number one, number two and so on - the players we are interested in can all make an impact at Championship level and beyond."

Funds

While Jones continues to toil away in his pursuit of a new forward he can at least take comfort from the fact that he has the full support of the club's board in regards to his transfer dealings.

"We have money available to strengthen the squad and we will use that where necessary," said chairman Peter Ridsdale.

"There certainly aren't unlimited funds. We don't have the money to buy a £5m player and finance the wages which inevitably go with that.

"That just isn't possible at this stage of Cardiff City's progress, but we will bring in the players our manager needs to complete his squad for the start of the season."