Nigel Pearson: Bristol City manager says criticism is fair after poor run
- Published
All three of the goals Bristol City conceded against Birmingham came from set-pieces
Bristol City manager Nigel Pearson says his team need to be "accountable" after a run of five matches without a win.
The Robins' recent 3-0 defeat by Birmingham City was a fourth loss in five games, their other result being a goalless draw against bottom-placed Coventry City.
City next face Preston North End at home on Wednesday, 12 October.
"We need to be accountable and the results haven't been good enough," Pearson told BBC Radio Bristol.
"Performances have been under-par, although the draw that we had midweek [against Coventry] was at least an improvement. We've had that draw book-ended with some poor performances.
"We didn't give ourselves a chance against Birmingham. We know what they're about and our inability to be able to deal with being put under stress was a painful watch and very disappointing for our fans.
"The criticism we get is warranted, there's no doubt about that."
'Sphere of influence'
Bristol City enjoyed a spell of seven matches unbeaten through August and were sitting among the Championship's top four after their last victory against Blackburn Rovers on 3 September.
But their run of poor results has seen the team plummet down to 18th in the table, albeit only six points off a play-off place.
While the team have scored 20 goals in 13 matches so far this season - the joint-second highest in the Championship - they have conceded 21, with only Hull City (26) conceding more.
"It is important that everybody accepts their own sphere of influence - they have to be able to perform themselves, the job that needs doing," Pearson said.
"The most reliable unit that we've got at the moment is our forwards and you don't often say that.
"We've been missing important players at the back and in midfield and we've been sometimes in and out of form.
"Normally I think you can rely on your defenders to be the bedrock of a team and we've unfortunately either collectively struggled at times or we've had individual problems."