Cardiff City are reportedly considering a move for Oxford United head coach Des Buckingham as pressure continues to build on manager Erol Bulut.

That’s according to Football Insider, who claim that Cardiff could turn to Buckingham if they decide to sack Bulut following a disappointing start to the season.

Bulut led the Bluebirds to a 12th-placed finish in the Championship last season, but they currently sit bottom of the table after picking up just one point from their first five games of the new campaign.

Despite increasing speculation over his future, Bulut will remain in charge of Cardiff for their home game against Leeds United on Saturday, but it seems the board are weighing up potential replacements, with Buckingham believed to be one name in the frame.

Buckingham was appointed as Oxford manager in November, and he led them to promotion from League One last season with a 2-0 win over Bolton Wanderers in the play-off final at Wembley in May.

It has been an impressive start to life back in the Championship for the U’s, and they currently sit seventh in the table after securing nine points from their opening five matches, but they could be set to face a battle to hold on to Buckingham.

Latest on Erol Bulut’s Cardiff City future

Bulut only signed a new two-year contract at the Cardiff City Stadium in June, and he was strongly backed in the summer transfer window, with high-profile additions such as Calum Chambers, Chris Willock and Anwar El Ghazi arriving in South Wales, but it has not been the start to the season the Bluebirds would have hoped for.

After his side suffered their fourth defeat in five games as they were beaten 1-0 at Derby County on Saturday, journalist John Percy claimed that the Cardiff board were considering Bulut’s future at the club, and further reports this week suggested that the 49-year-old was on the verge of being sacked.

However, Bulut looks set to be given more time, and he came out fighting in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game against Leeds, hitting out at the criticism he has received, particularly on social media.

“It’s normal you get pressure. What I don’t like also, if media or social media are writing about something to criticise me or my work, this I don’t like. Because it’s not true,” Bulut told Wales Online.

“You have to be honest. When everything goes well, everything is fine, when you have a few losses, no one is next to you.

“This is not something new. At least now I can see who is really next to us and who is not next to us. This is the point. Now I see real fans and real people who are next to us.

“When we are winning, everyone is next to us. When we are losing as a team, then who is next to us? When I see stupid things on social media about my players or myself, I don’t need that.

“If you are with us or with Cardiff City, you have to be with us until we die. Not only when we are winning, I don’t need that.”

It remains to be seen whether a defeat against the Whites would spell the end of Bulut’s tenure, but his departure does feel increasingly inevitable amid reports linking the Bluebirds with Buckingham.

However, they may need to move quickly if they are to land Buckingham’s signature as the 39-year-old is said to be “attracting a lot of interest in the Championship and beyond” after Oxford’s excellent start to the season.

Erol Bulut needs a result against Leeds United on Saturday

With rumours about potential replacements starting to emerge, Bulut cannot afford another defeat against Leeds this weekend, but it will be a tough game against Daniel Farke’s side.

Bulut issued a passionate defence of his team in his pre-match press conference on Thursday, but his claim that the Bluebirds have been unlucky this season is questionable, and his criticism of supporters is unlikely to have gone down well.

Given the impressive job he has done at the Kassam Stadium, Buckingham would be an exciting option for Cardiff if they decide to part company with Bulut, but there are doubts over whether it would be a progressive move for him at this stage of his career.

Buckingham has a strong emotional connection to Oxford, and his side look capable of being competitive in the Championship this season, so it would be a big gamble for him to leave for a club currently struggling at the bottom of the table.