Bristol City

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City head coach Gerhard Struber says his side has to "bounce back" after their 5-1 loss at Stoke City.

Divin Mubama scored a hat-trick for the Potters as the Robins lost for the first time away from home this season.

"This is the Championship and I think the Championship shows us, and especially Stoke City today showed us, a face where we had a lot of problems," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

"It's a really good learning point and a really good realisation of what's going on in this league when you're not on the highest level.

"We were not ready in our synchronised pressing, we were not ready to be sharp in transition, and I think they deserved the victory on this level.

"We were not sharp enough for this level and the good thing is we have to learn, we have to reflect, and we have to be very honest with ourselves.

"Everything that can go worst went worst today, but Tuesday night is waiting and we have to do everything right now that we bounce back on Tuesday night with our typical face."

Both Bristol City and Stoke City will be looking to keep themselves in the mix at the top when they face each other at the bet365 Stadium on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The two sides currently sit next to each other on the table, with the Robins taking a slender one point lead over the fifth placed Potters but trailing leaders Coventry City by six points prior to the weekend.

Bristol City could enter the top two with a victory should other results fall their way, while Stoke will want to take three points to secure their place in the top six for another weekend.

• Stoke City have lost five of their seven home league games against Bristol City since New Years Day 2019, their joint-most defeats on home soil against any side in that time period (also West Brom and Preston with five).

• Bristol City have lost just four of their last 13 league games against Stoke City (W7 D2), avoiding defeat in both meetings with the Potters last term (2-2 away, 2-0 home).

• Stoke have lost just two of their last 11 home league games (W6 D3), keeping five clean sheets during that time.

• Bristol City have won each of their last three league games and will be looking to win four in succession for the first time since their opening four matches of the 2020-21 campaign.

• Stoke City goalkeeper Viktor Johansson holds a 81.8% save percentage in the Championship this season, the best rate of any goalkeeper to face 10+ shots on target this term.

Bristol City forward Emil Riis is "on track" to be available for the trip to Stoke on Saturday, according to head coach Gerhard Struber.

The Dane came off at half-time during the win against Southampton on 21 October with an undisclosed injury, and also missed the win against Birmingham City last Saturday.

"Emil is back, everything is good, and he is available on Saturday," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

The Robins still remain without a number of players because of injury, particularly across their midfield, with Joe Williams, Jason Knight and Max Bird all out for a number of weeks now.

Struber said while it has brought better connections between those playing, he wants to be able to rotate more "fresh legs" into the team to maximise the style of play he wants to see.

"I am very unhappy that we have a situation like that," he said.

"We work hard, we have a better picture in this way, but right now it's a very small roster, especially the last game. You could see how close was it in the end [against Birmingham] to bring the points home."

Struber added that discussions have taken place with owner Steve Lansdown to add reinforcements in the January transfer window.

"We have a big trust in this group. We have to bring players back from injuries and then we want to use the transfer window in January, and I would say our owner is hungry this season," he said.

r

David Pottier
Fan writer

Image source, Rex Features

You often hear the phrase 'progressive English coach' bandied around and in the Championship that could certainly apply to Liam Manning, Will Still and Chris Davies of Norwich, Southampton, and Birmingham, respectively.

It would be true to say that, based on the season so far, none are living up to the expectations of their owners and I would not be surprised if at least one of them is out of a job before Christmas.

The other thing this managerial trio have in common is that in the space of seven days they all suffered defeat against Gerhard Struber's Bristol City.

Gerhard's philosophy when it comes to playing the game is far removed from the patient, possession-based approach preferred by Manning, Still and Davies.

The Austrian's coaching ethos is based upon energy, playing on the front foot and creating chaos in the attacking third of the field.

His team may be short on strikers but only free-scoring Coventry City have found the target more often in the Championship and the Robins are undefeated on the road, which means it should be an intriguing game at the weekend when they play the team immediately below them in the table, Mark Robins' Stoke City.

Struber showed on Saturday that there is more to him than his gung-ho approach as coaching aficionados' might label it.

His squad is decimated by injuries with at least four out who would be first picks and added to the others there is little opportunity for rotation with the demanding schedule of the Championship.

What makes matters worse is that most of the absentees are in midfield where, with his style, an abundance of energy is critical – Jason Knight, Max Bird and Joe Williams, plus the promising Josh Stokes, are all currently out with no firm date for any as regards their future availability.

Defender Zak Vyner is playing out of position alongside Adam Randell so their legs were going to be very tired after two games in five days. A further complication was that main striker Emil Riis' name was added to the injury list having come off after 55 minutes against Norwich on Tuesday.

Step forward the much-maligned Sinclair Armstrong for his first start since March. Not only did he continue to build on the improvement shown in recent substitute appearances but he scored his first goal since last November as he latched on to the impressive Rob Atkinson's pass and raced forward before expertly placing the ball with his right foot beyond James Beadle in the Birmingham goal.

In the second half, Birmingham laid siege to City's goal and this is where Struber showed his mettle as his well-drilled team defended as one, saving their tired legs and doing it in such a way that City keeper Radek Vitek did not have to make a save worthy of the name.

There is still a very long way to go - 34 games, in fact - but older fans who remember the 1975-76 promotion campaign are thinking maybe, just maybe, some 50 years on the club might repeat that feat.

Image source, Shutterstock

Goalkeeper Joe Lumley has returned to Bristol City after his emergency seven-day loan at Sheffield Wednesday.

Wednesday were allowed to sign Lumley, 30, last week after Ethan Horvath's red card at Charlton left them without a senior goalkeeper.

Northern Ireland's Pierce Charles is still recovering from shoulder surgery and Lumley made his Owls debut against his old club Middlesbrough on Wednesday before starting Saturday's clash against Oxford, the south Yorkshire club's first game since going into administration.

The former Reading and Middlesbrough stopper has now gone back to City, where he has made two EFL Cup appearances since his summer move from Southampton.

Wednesday confirmed Lumley's departure on Monday and said in a statement: "Thank you for stepping in Joe and best of luck for the future."

Gerhard Struber praised match-winner Sinclair Armstrong for his goal and for his attitude in training after Bristol City beat Birmingham City.

The Robins manager told BBC Radio Bristol: "Results-wise it's been really, really good but in possession, on this level today, was not what we want.

"We defended really, really well together and in the end it was very, very difficult for Birmingham to use their typical possession game in a direction where they could realise many good chances.

"We were super-sharp in transition from Sinclair Armstrong, in exactly the way we want to go. I was happy with the boys but you could see with all the effort they have invested in the last few games, they are empty!

"I'm very pleased [for Armstrong}. He trained with high investment for the past few months without much game time, and he is growing, stepping in the right direction."

Bristol City manager Gerhard Struber will make a late decision on the fitness of striker Emil Riis for the visit of Birmingham City.

The Dane went off early in the second half during Tuesday's 3-1 win over Southampton and walked straight down the tunnel with the undisclosed injury.

Struber said he was due to have a meeting with Riis and the club doctor on Friday afternoon but would not play him if there was any "risk".

"It is 100 per cent not a bad injury - we have to look if he is ready tomorrow or if the risk could be too high," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

Sinclair Armstrong came on for Riis against Saints and made an impact but his goalless streak now stands at 33 matches.

Struber said he has seen improvements from the 22-year-old in his creative play.

"We saw that he make one or another jumps in his personal style and he helps the group," Struber added.

"This is what we want and we will see how everything is working tomorrow [with Riis] but we need consistency in the performance.

"I like it when players are consistent on a really high level and this is something we can see the last two weeks, we have a group of players on a high level and very reliable in the games."

Bristol City head into this game looking to win three league matches in a row for the first time since December 2023.

Birmingham are going for back-to-back away victories, having won 1-0 at Preston on Tuesday evening.

• Bristol City have won just one of their past six league games against Birmingham City (D1 L4), failing to score in four of those matches.

• Birmingham City have won 10 of their past 13 away league games against Bristol City (D1 L2), including five of their previous six (L1).

• Only Coventry (12) have won more home Championship games in 2025 than Bristol City (10).

• After beating Preston 1-0 last time out, Birmingham are looking to win successive away Championship games for the first time since September 2022.

• Only Brandon Thomas-Asante (11) and Oliver McBurnie (9) have more goal involvements in the Championship this season than Bristol City's Anis Mehmeti (8 – 5 goals, 3 assists), recording five in his past five games at Ashton Gate (3 goals, 2 assists).

Bristol City head coach Gerhard Struber said he was "happy" with the energy, press in attack and clinical edge in front of goal from his side as they came from behind to beat Southampton 3-1.

The win was only the Robins' second home victory in the Championship this season and moved them up to fourth in the table.

"We are happy, we dealt with a big opponent, we are on a really good level," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

"We struggled a little bit in the first half especially in the first 30 minutes, we were not always on the same page in the way we press. It was really good that we bounced back with Anis Mehmeti, showed them how difficult it is against us.

"The second half we changed the pressing line and waited for the right moment to come in transitions, we killed them today over this phase and I'm very happy with how the boys did it, how smart they dealt with them.

"We spoke with the boys that we should be at home on the same balance like [we are] away and today we had the same energy, the smart pressing and were clean enough to score."

Southampton will look to take their chances when they make the trip to Bristol City for Tuesday's headline act (20:00 BST).

The Saints squandered multiple opportunities in their goalless encounter with Swansea City on Saturday but will want to be more ruthless in front of the net when they face seventh placed Robins.

The hosts ended a four match winless streak last time out to keep themselves within reach of the top six and a victory here could see them back in the play-off places.

• Bristol City have won five of their last six league meetings with Southampton, losing the other 1-0 in November 2023.

• Southampton have lost each of their last four league visits to Bristol City, last avoiding defeat via a 1-0 win in December 1979.

• Bristol City have lost two of their last three home league games (D1), more than their previous 17 beforehand (W12 D4 L1).

• Southampton have earned more points in their last two away league games (4 – W1 D1) than their previous nine beforehand (3 – D3 L6).

• Bristol City are unbeaten in their last nine midweek (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday) league games (W4 D5) since going down 0-1 to Watford in November 2024.

David Pottier
Fan writer

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City secured their first win in five games and, in so doing, increased the pressure on former manager Liam Manning who has steered the Canaries to their worst start to a season in terms of home fixtures in more than 120 years.

Manning will be remembered for securing a play-off place for City last season but many fans were not overly upset when he jumped ship to join a club whose owners have deeper pockets than the Lansdown family when it comes to improving the team.

Why did supporters feel this way? Well, save for the last four months of the season when City's home form was very good, the type of football served up by Manning was not geared to getting the fans up and out of their seats through excitement.

Judging by the gloomy faces on the Norwich fans when the cameras panned to the crowd they are seeing the worst of Manningball.

Although City's keeper Radek Vitek had to produce a few smart saves, they pretty much controlled the whole game and deserved to win by more than a well-taken goal by Mark Sykes who is one of the many players out of contract next summer.

Another of those is Zak Vyner who, if reports are to be believed, was subject of a £3m bid from Wrexham in the transfer window.

The club turned that down and you can be sure that come January any hope of getting a similar sum will have evaporated.

Vyner is playing in an unfamiliar midfield role because of City's injury crisis and was a contender for man of the match.

Barring injury, he will move on in the summer for very good personal terms having not reacted to City's contract offer, a fact confirmed by technical director Brian Tinnion at the club's fans' forum last week.

Goalkeeper Max O'Leary returned to the squad for the first time since May having recovered from his ankle injury.

He will find it difficult to replace the impressive Vitek and it will be interesting to see if he, or summer signing Joe Lumley, are loaned out in the January window.

That would only happen on the basis that Manchester United do not exercise the recall option on their young keeper.

City are doing alright so far and if, by the turn of the year they are in or within two or three points of the play-offs then it will be an interesting second half to the season as the injured players return.

None of those absent are in forward positions, so expect City to delve into the transfer market in that area of the field.

That's based on Tinnion's admission at the forum that their hopes for the acclimatisation to Championship football and development of Fally Mayulu and Sinclair Armstrong has so far not materialised.

Marc Webber, BBC Final Score reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City's Austrian boss Gerhard Struber may be humming the tune of the nuns of Nonnberg Abbey in the next few weeks as he faces a selection dilemma.

For instead of singing 'How do you solve a problem like Maria?' like his compatriots, it would be 'How do you solve a problem like a keeper?'

The man with the number one shirt, Max O'Leary, looks ready to return after three months out with an ankle injury.

He was imperious in their run to the play-offs last season and played in an under-21s game before the international break as part of his rehab.

However, stand-in Radek Vitek has impressed both manager and fans alike, and it is hard to see how he could be replaced.

The Manchester United loanee earned his corn again at Carrow Road on Saturday, with two sharp reaction saves, leading boss Struber to say how he is very impressed with how good Vitek is.

The irony that the Red Devils - with all their recent goalkeeper woes - have loaned out a seemingly strong stopper is not lost on some Bristol City fans, who are already worrying about his parent club calling him back.

Image source, PA Media

Bristol City boss Gerhard Struber urged his side to transfer their impressive away from to home matches following a 1-0 victory at Norwich City.

The Robins moved into the top six after Mark Sykes' goal gave them victory over former boss Liam Manning's team at Carrow Road.

They are unbeaten in five games on the road - but the victory followed a run of only one point from their last three at home.

"The effort and how much the boys invested was on a very high level," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

"Every single player was so focused and concentrated in his own task and how we went as a team was brilliant.

"The boys left everything on the field - the belief was we would score a goal and the determination was at an outstanding level and I felt it was only a matter of time (before we scored.

"We now have to bring our away power to our home games, this is something that should be the next step."

The Robins return to Ashton Gate on Tuesday when they will take on Southampton.

Image source, Rex Features

Bristol City have recalled midfielder Jed Meerholz from his loan spell at Aldershot Town.

The 19-year-old made 14 appearances in all competitions, scoring once, and starting 11 National League games, utilised in the heart of the Shots defence.

Robins boss Gerhard Struber is dealing with a central midfield crisis ahead of Saturday's trip to Norwich with skipper Jason Knight, Max Bird and Joe Williams all unavailable.

Williams, 28, is set to be out until the New Year with an ankle injury sustained in the Championship play-off semi-final against Sheffield United in May, though Knight (groin) and Bird (calf) should be back sooner.

"With Knighty I would say the healing we saw on the scan is looking good but we must be patient with him and he will be out for six to eight weeks," Struber told BBC Radio Bristol.

"With Birdy it could be a quick comeback and we hope within the next few weeks he will be back but we have to be patient here as it's the second time he's had something in his calf."