Ask any Crystal Palace supporter about Stuart O'Keefe and the response is always the same. A vastly-popular midfielder at Selhust Park, O'Keefe ended his five-year association with the Eagles last week after completing a move to Cardiff City.
The 23-year-old, who also had a short loan spell at Blackpool earlier this season, has penned a two-and-a-half-year deal with the Welsh outfit and made his debut in last weekend's Championship clash at home to Derby County.
Here, Sports Mole has caught up with the all-action midfielder to discuss his new move and hopes for the future.
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Firstly Stuart, how pleased are you to be a Cardiff City player and were there any other clubs interested in the January window?
"To be honest, I am over the moon. I am chuffed with it. When my agent told me that Cardiff was involved, I was desperate to push it through. There were a couple of other clubs interested. Millwall were one of those, but Cardiff was the one that stuck out for me and I was happy to get it over the line. It is a massive club with a lot of potential, good facilities, nice stadium, so I was keen to go there."
What about your debut against Derby at the weekend? Disappointing result, but you must have been pleased to go straight into the team?
"Yeah it was pleasing. Obviously it was a disappointing result. I had my medical last week and only trained Thursday and Friday so to go straight into the team said a lot.
"It was a poor result, but Derby are top of the league and the club is in a bit of a transition at the moment with signings and people coming in and out so it was always going to be hard [against Derby]. I was just pleased to make my debut and it is onwards and upwards now.
"Who knows? We have had a different run, playing Derby, Middlesbrough and Norwich City. We have had a difficult January and with people coming in and out, it makes it hard. Who knows what could happen? In this league, you put three or four wins together and you are back up there. There is still a long way to go in the season."
You also had a short loan spell at Blackpool earlier this season, was it difficult to come into a struggling club?
"It was difficult. It was one of those where I had to decide whether I would just sit at Palace – having been left out of their 25-man Premier League squad due to injury – or go and get football elsewhere.
"It was the last day of the loan window and it was difficult, everyone knows the circumstances and the situation the club is in, but I was happy to go up there. I appreciated that they wanted me and I played four games in a month. It was definitely better than sitting and doing nothing."
What about Palace? Was it frustrating not to be more involved this season after impressing during the 2013-14 campaign?
"It was really frustrating. I thought that I had a good season last season under Ian Holloway and Tony Pulis, and I had a good pre-season, but Pulis left just before the Arsenal game, which was a bit of a surprise to everyone. I came on at Arsenal and then started at West Ham and it looked positive for me, but I then got that bad injury, which set me back three months or it would have been more if I needed surgery so it wasn't easy.
"Neil Warnock then came in and decided not to put me in the 25-man squad, which was a setback mentally. It was a knockback because I felt that I deserved to be in it. My main concern at the time though was to make sure that my injury was right and not to come back too soon.
"It was Alan Pardew's first game [against Dover Athletic] and I came into the team and I thought we did really well that day. I was happy to be back at Palace, but I wasn't involved in the Spurs game the following weekend which was a surprise to me, so I thought the writing was on the wall. Pardew looked like strengthening the squad and it was around that time that other clubs were showing an interest."
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"I am 23 now and at the stage of my life where I want to move on and get a lot of games under my belt, playing as many games as possible. I loved it at Palace, loved the lads and the place, it just wasn't meant to be. I am really looking forward to my new challenge.
"The fans were great to me at Palace. When I first went there under George Burley, they were struggling and had just come out of administration. I went through some tough times at Palace, but the last couple of years just took off – getting promoted, the playoff final, staying in the Premier League for the first time. I had some great memories and the Palace fans were supporting me along the way."
Finally, has the training ground at Cardiff been a welcoming place and what are your hopes for this weekend's trip to Sheffield Wednesday?
"The lads have been brilliant. I know a few of the lads – Kagisho Dikgacoi, Danny Gabbidon, Scott Malone, Alex Revell and Sean Morrison - so I know a few of them anyway. They have taken to me well and I have got a really good feeling about Cardiff.
"Sheffield Wednesday will be a tough place to go. Everyone knows that Hillsborough is an old-school ground. They are not doing too bad this year. We will go there and it will be hard, it will be a bit of a scrap, but we are up for the fight and can hopefully go there and get something."
Matt Law
