But now the club is in the Premier League the events of the last 24 hours, where there have been revelations of a bonus row, the suspension of Malky's chief scout and right hand man Iain Moody (to be replaced by a 23 year old who watches the games on a laptop) and the claims that a devastated but determinied Malky will not resign despite suggestions he was asked to, means the national press are taking an interest.
To say 'you couldn't make it up' is inaccurate. With Tan at the helm of Cardiff City anything can happen.
The unsettlement has caused disbelief amongst the hardiest of fans, those who accepted Tan's rebrand for the sake of success are shaking their heads in disbelief at how a club, who have tried to get to this level for generations, looks as if it will implode and force out one of the brightest young managers in the country.
The events here have not gone unnoticed.
Broadcaster Gary Lineker @GaryLineker
What is going on at Cardiff? I've an awful feeling Malky Mackay's great work may be unravelled. Could end with faces as red as the kit!
Talksport radio host Danny Kelly @dannykellywords
Truth time. From the mo Vince Tan turned blue shirts red, merrily pissing on 100 yrs of history, this was all heading shitward. #JustWrong
Shows on Talksport this afternoon featured South Wales reporters and former Bluebird Jason Perry. All of which could not see any positives coming from Tan's meddling team affairs.
The football pages of the Daily Mail, The Guardian, The Independent and The Mirror are all running with this news and go into more detail including this from The GUardian:
At 2pm Moody was informed in writing that he had been suspended pending an investigation into his alleged activities during the negotiation of transfers in the summer window. Yet by 6pm this statement was contradicted when Moody was told that he was not suspended and had been placed on gardening leave.
Moody is said to be unhappy at the allegations, which referred to an overspend of the transfer budget. Moody helped Mackay sign Sevilla's Gary Medel for £11m, Tottenham Hotspur's Steven Caulker for £9m, Andreas Cornelius of FC Copenhagen for £8.5m and Rennes's Kévin Théophile-Catherine for £2.1m. Yet it is understood that neither Moody's nor Mackay's name appears on any of the players' contracts, while that of the chief executive, Simon Lim, does. The club has declined to comment.
Now we wait for the club's response.