Former Cardiff City defender Steven Caulker believes it will be “tough” for Erol Bulut to keep his job as manager of the Welsh club.
And Caulker, who is currently playing his football in Turkey, thinks Cardiff’s next two matches could decide the future of their Turkish boss.
The Bluebirds are bottom of the Championship having collected just one point – and scored only one goal – from their five matches so far.
They host Leeds United on Saturday before a trip to another side struggling in the Championship, Hull City.
After moving Cardiff away from the lower reaches of the division last season, Bulut – following protracted negotiations – signed a new deal in the summer. However there is now considerable speculation as to whether he can keep his job.
“It’s going to be a tough ask, to be honest,” said Caulker who played for the club during their one season in the Premier League.
“I was quite optimistic at the start of the season. I feel that he offered Cardiff some much-needed stability last year and felt that he got some signings in this summer.
“I think everyone, including myself, had a bit of expectation this year that Cardiff were going to be there or thereabouts and how they’ve started, it’s been the complete opposite.”
Bulut’s original one-year deal as Cardiff boss expired at the end of last season, when the club finished 12th in the Championship – although they lost six of their last nine matches.
Having eventually agreed a new a two-year deal in June, Bulut has seen his side endure the club’s worst start to a season in 35 years, sparking plenty of criticism from supporters.
“These things can happen in football and we’ve seen it turn round on many occasions,” said Caulker.
“But with someone like Vincent Tan in charge we know that time is often limited in these circumstances.”
Since purchasing Cardiff in 2010, Tan has employed 11 permanent managers, with five of those departing between September and early November.
Once-capped England defender Caulker thinks that is a worrying sign for Bulut, though he believes it would be better for the club to be patient in the current storm.
“I think that the majority of managers need more time,” he told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast.
“I think it’s very unsettling for a team to change managers every few months.
“I think that if you trust in someone a few months ago, what changes since then?
“But I have to hear [the fans]. The football hasn’t been too enjoyable to watch and I think when you’re not getting results and you’re not playing good football, I think that’s when there’s major cause for concern.
“Vincent Tan, we know he likes to react to things and is not shy of making a change, so we know that he will be certainly following the situation very closely and I think this weekend will be a big game.
“If they fail to get the result and then leading into Hull City, who are also struggling, away next week, I think within the next two games we’ll know.
“He’ll either get the result and it will be Erol until the end of the season or unfortunately things may turn a little sour for him.”
Former Spurs defender Caulker, currently playing with Ankara club Keciorengucu, played under Bulut for Turkish sides Alanyaspor and Gaziantep.
And the 31-year-old former Bluebirds skipper believes that despite the pressure, his old boss has both the ability and the squad to transform Cardiff’s season.
“I believe he does and he also has the experience, he’s managed big clubs,” he added.
“He’s been at Fenerbahce which is a huge club with huge expectations, huge pressure, so he’s handled that.
“He did well in his time there and he does have that experience to turn things around and I believe he does have the squad to do it, but at the moment they’re falling short in both boxes.
“I think fans want to see at the very least their team attacking and playing entertaining football and at the moment it just seems to be the team are a little bit short on confidence and something is going to have to change.
“He’s someone I know personally and I hope that he’s able to get a result this weekend and things turn.”