Bristol City

David Pottier
Fan writer

Image source, Rex Features

In the world of many Bristol City fans (well, certainly mine!) everything was in place in the build-up to Sunday's game against Oxford United for what we knew would end up being an afternoon of disappointment.

It was a lovely sunny day, a bumper crowd for a match designated as the club's Family Day, opponents without a win in their opening five games, a chance to move to second place in the table and, by winning, make it the best start to a season at this level for 51 years.

We weren't disappointed in our expectation of disappointment as City stumbled to defeat in a very lacklustre performance, only brightened by a potential goal of the season contender from Anis Mehmeti.

In fairness to Gary Rowett's Oxford, they had earned two creditable draws in their previous two games against Coventry and Leicester and, on this showing, they do not look to be contenders for involvement in a relegation scrap as the season moves forward.

City coach Gerhard Struber is still enjoying his honeymoon period in the fans' eyes although some were certainly questioning his substitution decisions through all phases of the game.

Many thought the loss after 15 minutes of left-sided defender Rob Atkinson should signal the introduction of loan signing Neto Borges as a natural fit for that side of the pitch. Instead he elected to push right-footed Zak Vyner across to join the similarly footed McCrorie on the left flank and bring on the defensively oriented George Tanner.

With Mark Sykes having a very poor first half many thought he should have come off at half-time to allow McCrorie to move to his natural position with Yu Hirakawa coming on in a role he is familiar with.

Instead we had to wait until the 71st minute for a double substitution and when Fally Mayulu and Sinclair Armstrong came on with five minutes remaining, City's team shape was all over the place.

One thing that is baffling City fans right now is an apparent reluctance to take off his talisman Jason Knight, even when he is having an indifferent game, as was the case on Sunday.

Adam Randell's number is always the one that comes up and so far this season he is being more Jason Knight than Jason Knight. Give the energetic Irishman a rest for goodness' sake.

Yes, Sunday was a bad day at the office but City have it in them to bounce back with a result at Deepdale at the weekend, their first game against a team in the top half of the table.

You can hear more from David Pottier on the Forever Bristol City podcast., external

Image source, Rex Features

Bristol City were not at their normal "standard" in the defeat 3-1 defeat by Oxford United said head coach Gerhard Struber.

The Robins fell to their first Championship defeat of the campaign under the Austrian, conceding three goals - two from free-kicks - against the U's.

"We were not super-ready in set-pieces. All three goals we conceded were over set-pieces - moments with not the right tension, not the right behaviour," Struber said.

"They had power in this way but how we dealt with those moments was not normally our standard.

"Until this game we have been really good in set-pieces, how we defend against the opponents, but today it was not on a really good level and this makes the difference.

"In both boxes it was not always in the right tension, the right sharpness that we have to be.

"I'm happy how we fight, how we believe to come back. The boys invested today but in both boxes it was not so strong like normally and this makes the difference."

Image source, Rex Features

Bristol City have to wait for more news on centre-back Rob Atkinson's injury after he went off after 15 minutes in the defeat by Oxford.

Atkinson has started all six league games for the Robins this season after returning from a long-term knee injury that kept him out of the squad for more than two years.

"We don't know exactly right now, it's something on the knee," head coach Gerhard Struber said.

"It was a bit of an over-stretch. We have to look deeper tomorrow with the scan."

Struber also confirmed midfielder Max Bird has picked up another calf injury that kept him out of the matchday squad for the visit of Oxford.

Bird missed pre-season with another calf problem, although Struber said this one "looks not so bad".

"Unfortunately yesterday in the pre-match training he has a problem again with his calf. We have to look deeper tomorrow with a scan and then we know much more," Struber said.

Winless Oxford United head to unbeaten Bristol City on Sunday (15:00 BST) seeking to get their season started.

After losing their opening three Championship games of the season, Gary Rowett's men have responded with back-to-back 2-2 draws against Coventry and Leicester, though both came at home.

The Robins went into the weekend two points off the top after three wins and two draws in their opening five games and scored seven times in their past two fixtures against Hull City and Sheffield Wednesday.

• Bristol City are unbeaten in their last five league games against Oxford United (W2 D3) since losing 3-0 in October 1999.

• Oxford have lost one of their past eight away league visits to Bristol City (W2 D5) though that defeat was last season in a 2-1 defeat.

• Bristol City are enjoying their best start to a league season (11 points in 5 games) since winning 13 in their opening five games in 2020-21, though they went onto finish 19th that campaign.

• Oxford were unbeaten in their first nine league games under Gary Rowett but they've since won four of their past 21 matches (D6 L11). Since the date of this 21-game run (4 February), the only ever-present side to win fewer points than the U's (18) is Sheffield Wednesday (17).

• Bristol City's Anis Mehmeti has both scored and assisted in each of his last two Championship appearances – he had only achieved this once in his first 129 games in the competition beforehand.

Bristol City have taken "big belief" from their results so far, says head coach Gerhard Struber, as the club remain unbeaten in the Championship after five matches.

The Robins play Oxford United in their next match on Sunday, having beaten Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 away in their previous game.

City are averaging three goals per game going forward and have also conceded the second lowest amount in the division so far, with four.

"When you step out with clean sheets, when you step out with victories, it's always good for the confidence but also how we interpreted our identity, this is good to see and this gives everyone big belief," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

Struber said even after a comprehensive win against the Owls, his players were already looking at what more they could have done.

"We have leaders in the dressing room that all have high standards," he added.

"It must not always be the manager in front of the group saying something - they are also very good at reflecting and ready for more."

Struber added defender Rob Dickie is available to face the U's after going off at half-time last weekend.

Listen to more from Struber and Bristol City on BBC Sounds.

Image source, Rex Features

Reports of a Bristol City takeover by Saudi Arabian investors are "purely speculation", says Bristol Sport Group CEO and club director Gavin Marshall.

The Championship club have been linked this week to a takeover, external by Saudi boxing promoter Turki Alalshikh.

The news comes as WSL 2 side Bristol City Women have been sold by the Lansdown family to investment group Mercury13.

"It's just purely speculation. Since Steve's [Lansdown, owner] been open about looking for investment we've had a lot of speculation around different interested parties," Gavin Marshall told BBC Radio Bristol.

In May, Lansdown said the men's club were "not close" to a takeover or potential new investment having first declaration his intention to sell some, or all, of the club in 2021.

Any sale is complicated by the fact the club - as the women's side previously did - sits under the Bristol Sport umbrella, which also comprises Bristol Bears' men's and women's rugby teams and the Bristol Flyers basketball outfit.

Work on a new 'Sporting Quarter' near Ashton Gate Stadium is also set to begin later this year.

Marshall, however, said the sale was only about the women's WSL 2 side.

"This deal is about Bristol City Women, Steve's been open around looking for investment who can take the club forward hence this deal with Mercury13," Marshall added.

David Pottier
Fan writer

Image source, Rex Features

While this season is still in its infancy, the signs are that Bristol City coach Gerhard Struber is playing a brand of football that is in stark contrast to that served up by predecessor Liam Manning throughout most of his 18 months at the club.

Manning did get City to the play-offs with a tremendous run of home form since the turn of the year, but on the road they were a consistent disappointment for travelling fans with only two wins in the last six months leading up to the season's end.

In stark contrast, Struber has won two on the road from the five which make up the unbeaten sequence and City have scored three or more goals already compared with just achieving that four times over the whole of last season.

So just how good is the start to the season compared to years gone by?

This is City's 11th successive season in the Championship and their best start [first five games] since the lockdown season 2020-21 when they won the opening four and would have made it five had Callum O'Dowda not conceded a last minute penalty away at Barnsley.

That start probably saved City from relegation as the spring brought a six-game losing run which led to the sacking of Dean Holden and by the end of the season the drop was avoided by only seven points.

Going back further, only 2007-08 and 2014-15 match results this season of three wins and two draws.

The latter was in League One under Steve Cotterill and end up with promotion, the latter Championship with Gary Johnson at the helm, and compared with both, our goal difference is better this time around.

Roll the clock back 50 years to the 1975-76 season, which ended in promotion to the top flight, and the season began with two wins, two defeats and a draw so it really is too early to draw any conclusions.

When will that first defeat come? One would hope it won't be this weekend at home to Oxford on Sunday afternoon but then this is Bristol City who have an annoying habit of lifting your hopes only to dash them when form says they should not.

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Image source, Rex Features

Bristol City midfielder Anis Mehmeti said he could have scored "three or four" goals in Saturday's win against Sheffield Wednesday.

Mehmeti scored once and set up another goal in the 3-0 win but also rounded Owls keeper Ethan Horvath and saw the shot palmed away, found the side netting and hit the post in the second half.

The 24-year-old, who now has three goals this campaign, said his link-up play with Scott Twine and Emil Riis is only getting better.

"I probably could have had three or four [goals]. I know it seems mad to say but it's all abut relationships and creating those bonds together and me and Twiney and Emil have been doing that, so long may it continue," he told BBC Radio Bristol.

"We're unbeaten five games in and we've been terrific but I think we need to keep that going. We know the Championship is a long season and it's all about putting runs together. We're doing that now."

Betty Glover
BBC Final Score reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City look like they're going from strength to strength this season. You only have to look at their results to see how dangerous they are in front of goal.

They opened their campaign with a 4-1 win over Sheffield United, beat Hull 4-2 before the international break, and thrashed Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 this weekend to climb up to third.

Their front three link up well, but the player who really catches the eye is Anis Mehmeti.

The Albania international has now reached 100 Championship appearances for the club and is consistently the most exciting player on the pitch. He's at the heart of City's attacks and is electric down that left-hand side.

That was clear in their win over Sheffield Wednesday, where he scored one and assisted another, and he could have had more.

Bristol City are flying high - and so is Mehmeti's confidence. He's a player who has matured significantly over the past few months and could prove crucial to their campaign.

Bristol City will look to keep their unbeaten start to the Championship alive as they visit Hillsborough on Saturday (15:00 BST).

The Robins have enjoyed a good opening to the season with two wins and two draws, but are nursing some transfer window disappointment after failing to sign an additional striker.

On the other hand, Sheffield Wednesday have not yet registered a league win and will hoping to do so on home soil after signing Manchester United loanee Harry Amass on transfer deadline day.

• Sheffield Wednesday are unbeaten in their last three league games against Bristol City (W1 D2), with both league meetings last season ending in a draw (0-0 in October and 2-2 in January).

• Since a 3-2 win against Sheffield Wednesday in December 2012, Bristol City are without a win in their last eight league trips to Hillsborough (D3 L5).

• Sheffield Wednesday are winless in their last six league games (D3 L3), while they've lost seven of their previous nine at Hillsborough (W1 D1).

• Bristol City are one of four sides still unbeaten in the Championship so far this season (W2 D2); they last avoided defeat in their opening five league games of a campaign in 2020-21.

• Each of Scott Twine's three league goals for Bristol City this season have come away from home, with each of his previous seven coming on home soil. Indeed, no player has scored more often on the road in the Championship this season than Twine.

Image source, Getty Images

Middlesbrough boss Rob Edwards, Coventry City's Frank Lampard, West Bromwich Albion's Ryan Mason and Stoke City's Mark Robins have been nominated for the Championship's manager of the month award for August.

Edwards will be a strong contender as Boro occupy top spot after an unblemished winning start to the season, while Mason has enjoyed an unbeaten start in his first permanent managerial role with his Baggies side in second.

Lampard is also recognised as Coventry are yet to lose, while influential Sky Blues midfielder Victor Torp has earned a nomination for player of the month for his four goals in four matches.

Stoke City have another nominee in new signing Sorba Thomas, who has two goals and three assists across his four games, with the Potters who lie third under Robins.

Meanwhile, Norwich City striker Josh Sargent and Bristol City full-back Ross McCrorie round out the player of the month nominations after strong starts to their respective seasons.

Sargent has found the target five times in four games, while McCrorie delivered three assists and scored one goal in August.

The winners will be announced on Friday.

David Pottier
Fan writer

Image source, PA Media

City go into the international break buoyed by going unbeaten in four league games and off the back of a hugely entertaining 4-2 win over Hull City at the weekend, where the collective number of shots in the match was an abnormally high 49.

A little over 48 hours later, many City fans have that all too familiar deflated feeling as the transfer window slammed shut and the yearned-for additional striker did not materialise. A striker that would shore up an attacking lineup that, should Emil Riis get injured, is woefully weak.

There was one signing in the form of Brazilian Neto Borges on loan from Middlesbrough, who will offer something to City's defensive left flank. But that's it.

The club did resist offers for defender Zak Vyner who wasn't pushing for a move but who can leave for nothing in the summer. Being out of contract he can probably secure a better personal deal for himself then, unless he signs a new deal at City in the meantime.

City were looking to move on probably three of the four strikers of whom the general consensus is that none are up to the task of being effective in the Championship.

They succeeded to move on only one as Sam Bell went on a season-long loan to Wycombe Wanderers. It's somewhere his father Micky played for before joining City in the late 90s, with Micky eventually becoming a key member of the John Ward-led promotion side of 1997-98.

There were no takers for Sinclair Armstrong, Harry Cornick nor Fally Mayulu although the latter has offered some hope that he can contribute with a couple of promising late substitute appearances.

All in all there is an argument to say this has been a successful summer in terms of recruitment and retention. Riis and goalkeeper Radek Vitek appear to be inspired signings and after two-and-a-half years out through injury, you could argue Rob Atkinson is as good as a new one too.

Many expected Jason Knight to attract interest from a Premier League club but it never came. Adam Randell - the player City signed for £500,000 from Plymouth Argyle and was seen as a likely replacement for Knight had he gone - has probably been our best player so far.

Playing alongside the Irishman Knight in midfield the pair have a style suited to 'Struberball'.

City face a batch of five fixtures before the next international break which starts 6 October. If they can maintain their current top six position in the Championship table during this run it will bode well for the rest of the season.

You can hear more from David Pottier on the Forever Bristol City podcast., external

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