Williams out for 'months' with Achilles tear

Joe Williams last played for Bristol City in the win against Preston

Bristol City midfielder Joe Williams is set to be out for "months" with a partial tear of his Achilles tendon.

Williams went off injured during the win against Preston on 2 November and has been in London seeing a specialist.

The 27-year-old has made 12 Championship appearances for the Robins so far this season.

"We're talking months for Joe, it's an unfortunate one and one that's tricky to heal because of how Achilles tend to repair so it's one you have to be careful with," head coach Liam Manning told BBC Radio Bristol.

Bristol City were enduring somewhat of an injury crisis before the international break, but Manning said a number of players were nearing their return to the first team.

Scott Twine is "getting close" as is Kal Naismith who is "not far away," while Ross McCrorie is still a "couple of weeks away".

Sam Bell and Rob Atkinson, who have both been out with long-term injuries, are also nearing returns.

"It's making sure that Rob doesn't go two, three, four weeks without playing match minutes because I do think it's really important for him to keep building up that bank of workload," Manning said.

"[Bell has] been training fully, he looks really sharp but he's looking well so hopefully he can continue that."

Bristol City went into the international break on the back of a win against Norwich

Manning took over at Ashton Gate in November 2023 and said he believes the squad has got "depth" and "competition" in a way it did not a year ago.

The Robins host Burnley on Saturday, before travelling to Watford on Tuesday and then playing Plymouth at home on Saturday, 30 November.

"We're going into a heavy period in a slightly different stage to what I felt we were last year. Now we've got depth, we've got competition, we've got options to make changes and sustain, if not raise, the level as we've seen in recent weeks," Manning added.

"The squad's in a good place and we want to get people back but we want to get them back and keep them back."

Bristol City went into the international break with a dominant 2-0 win against Norwich and a frustrating last-minute defeat by Sheffield United.

Manning said the biggest thing he had seen this season was the players going "all-in".

"We want to make sure we're aggressive, we're on the front foot, we hit the level we know we're capable of and give everything," he said.

"I think the lads have hit a consistent level of performance and it's how do you sustain that across such a tough level of November and December."