Bristol City

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Bristol City goalkeeper Lewis Thomas has signed a new one-year contract with the club, with the option of a further year.

The 27-year-old has yet to make an appearance for the Robins since joining in 2023.

Thomas began his career with Swansea and spent five years with Forest Green Rovers, where he worked alongside Bristol City goalkeeping coach Pat Mountain.

City start their Championship campaign away at Sheffield United on 9 August.

"To get a player of his standard on a free transfer is a really good signing for Bristol City.

"He suffered a bit last season, coming off the bench, and I think there was an acceptance that Emil was going to leave at the end of the season from quite early on."

BBC Radio Lancashire's Gary Hunt speaks to Richard Hoskin about the Robins' latest acquisition, Emil Riis Jakobsen, following his departure from Preston North End.

Listen to the full interview and more on Bristol City on BBC Sounds.

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Chris Hogg and James Krause have left Bristol City to join Liam Manning's coaching team at Norwich.

Former Hibernian player Hogg, 40, will be assistant head coach, having worked with Manning at the Robins, Oxford United and MK Dons, and also has previous coaching experience at Newcastle United.

New first-team coach analyst Krause also worked with Manning at Ashton Gate and the MKM Stadium, and previous worked at Arsenal.

They join first team coach Ryan Garry, who has arrived from Lommel SK and previously was part of the youth set-up at the Gunners and England.

Sporting director Ben Knapper told the Canaries, external website: "Chris and James are, of course, well known to Liam, both forming a key part of his staff for some time now, across multiple clubs.

"They have both slotted in seamlessly this week and will be key in supporting Liam and the staff more broadly in creating a top-class environment for our players.

"It's a really exciting team to be supporting Liam in delivering a truly elite football programme."

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Bristol City have appointed Bernd Eibler as assistant head coach following the departure of Chris Hogg to rejoin former boss Liam Manning at Norwich City.

The Austrian has previously worked alongside new Robins boss Gerhard Struber at MLS team New York Red Bulls and German side FC Cologne.

This will be the first time Eibler, who did not play football professionally, has worked in English football.

"Bernd is a bright young coach who will bring an energy and football development to the club," Struber told the club website., external

"I am very glad to have him join me at Bristol City."

The EFL fixture list is out and we know you are bursting to know what you've got to look forward to - or dread - from your team this upcoming season.

Here are some key dates to put in your diary:

• 9 August - v Sheff Utd (A)

• 16 August - v Charlton (H)

• 18 October - v Norwich (A)

• 26 December- v West Bromwich Albion (A)

• 1 January 2026 - v Portsmouth (H)

• 18 April - v Norwich (H)

• 2 May - v Stoke (H)

See Bristol City's full fixture list here.

Your club will soon discover their schedule for the upcoming EFL season. As soon as Thursday, in fact.

Want to know who your side will face on opening day? The EFL fixtures will be announced at 12:00 BST - but that's not all.

The day will be rounded off by the first round of Carabao Cup being drawn at 16:30 BST.

So check back on 26 June to see who your team faces first, last and everything in between.

David Pottier
Fan writer

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So City have a new head coach in Austrian Gerhard Struber. Judging by fan sentiment expressed on social media, it seems a popular appointment and certainly won't divide supporters like when Liam Manning came in for the popular Nigel Pearson in November 2023.

This is City's first European managerial appointment since 1998 when Benny Lennartsson was hired by then chairman Scott Davidson to "help" John Ward, who barely four months earlier had guided City to promotion back to the Championship.

John had actually asked for help and wanted to bring in the experienced Ray Harford but the City hierarchy went for the 'fashionable' coach option.

John actually resigned feeling his position had become untenable and the red cap wearing Swede had the worst start of any City manager in the post-war years.

City lost 5-0 to Bradford City at Valley Parade in his first game in charge and things got even worse in his second as they went down 6-1 at home to Wolves, a match remembered perhaps more for the mascot punch up between Wolfie & the Three Little Pigs!! Lennartsson won only six of his 30 league games in charge as City were relegated.

If you go back to 1980, City took the foreign option for the first time when hiring Bob Houghton to replace the long serving Alan Dicks.

Houghton, with a young Roy Hodgson as his assistant, had a decent pedigree having guided Malmo to the European Cup Final the previous year - they lost 1-0 to Nottingham Forest - as City sought to make a quick return to the top flight where they had been since 1976.

The die had already been cast in terms of City's fate as the financial troubles mounted by the week and the ageing side began to disintegrate. City were relegated for a second successive season and in the January of 1982, Houghton resigned before the volcano of financial despair erupted and what followed was all that we associate with the Ashton Gate Eight.

Let's hope it is third time lucky for City with a foreign coaching appointment and we are not hearing cries of "Uber for Struber" before the turn of the year.

Personally, I'm excited by what I read about his preferred way of playing and as a person I think we might see someone who wears his heart on his sleeve, which will excite the Ashton Gate faithful who warm to managers who don't stay rooted within the technical area.

Find more from David at the Forever Bristol City Podcast, external

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New Bristol City manager Gerhard Struber's style of play will give a new "lease of life" to the club's forwards, chairman Jon Lansdown believes.

Fally Mayulu, Sinclair Armstrong and Harry Cornick are the three centre-forwards in the squad for next season, although Mayulu spent much of the last campaign on loan and Cornick was out injured.

Lansdown, however, reiterated that bolstering their forward line was a priority this summer.

"Gerhard often plays with two up top, it's a completely different thing. It gives a new lease of life to your Fally's and Sinclair - they will be a really good fit for this style," Lansdown told BBC Radio Bristol.

"We we still need more because you might have two playing up there rather than one. It's things we're already thinking and already on."

Nahki Wells' future at the club still remains unresolved. The 34-year-old was said to be in talks over a new contract last month.

"I haven't got anything to update at the moment other than we've not lost contact, I've still seen him in and around keeping fit," Lansdown said.

"We'll pick that up when we get going with Gerhard."

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Gerhard Struber has been announced as the new head coach of Bristol City.

Here are some of your views on the appointment of the Austrian to replace Liam Manning.

Kristian - I love the way the Austrian national team plays, and apparently it's hard coded into Austrian football. So to have an Austrian head coach with a reputation for that style of play, and an academy that's set up for it, makes me quite excited.

Hedley - One thing I have to say is that any manager at City must have some help with bringing in fresh talent which we lacked in key areas especially in the play-offs as we were not in the same class as Sheffield United. Unless this happens it will be a difficult season.

Kevin - Got to give the guy a chance but hope he plays two up front.

Simon - On first impressions very positive. Talks a good game and seems passionate, only time will tell.

Paul - No, it's a poor one again from the chairman.

Alan - My only concern is that owner Steve Lansdown has shown little sign of seriously investing in this team. I only hope that Struber obtained some assurances about strengthening City (particularly up front) before committing.

Clive - We as fans don't know how good or bad the new manager will be but after 10 games will have a good idea. The first thing for us as fans will be to see if and who the board allow him to move on from the poor strike force we have and replace them with decent forwards or he will fail.

Mark - Struber wasn't first on my list let alone in the top five - Steve Lansdown said we should aim to repeat last season's performance but I'd love to see us finish in the top five and should we end up in the play-offs again we have to go and win it, that's the next logical step. Anything less then a top-six finish will be a disappointing season.

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New Plymouth Argyle head coach Tom Cleverley says he is resigned to losing midfielder Adam Randell.

Speculation has linked the homegrown 24-year-old with a move to Championship side Bristol City after Argyle were relegated to League One last month.

Randell played 173 games for the Pilgrims over seven years and scored 10 goals and has a year remaining on his contract.

"You're going to have a lot of interest and especially when there's buy-out clauses and things like that, so there's a strong possibility that that happens," Cleverley said.

"He's a player that I really admire. When we played Plymouth in the cup last year and speaking to Wayne (Rooney), he spoke really highly of him and being a midfielder myself he's someone who I've paid a lot of attention to over the last 10 months.

"I'm disappointed I'm not able to work with him but I'll never stand in the way of anyone wanting to play at the top level.

"Let's hope that our players are playing at that level together at Argyle and we don't lose too many of them."

Ed Hadwin
BBC Radio Bristol

Gerhard Struber is only Bristol City's second-ever manager from mainland Europe, and their first since Swede Benny Lennartsson's shortlived spell at Ashton Gate, which lasted just eight months and ended in July 1999.

Struber's only spell managing in England came in 2019-20, when he kept Barnsley in the Championship, before then moving to the City Football Group where he's managed teams in both New York and Salzburg.

Last season, he led Cologne in Germany to second place in the second tier but was sacked shortly before the end of the campaign, with the team going on to win promotion back to the top division.

Struber is taking over a Robins squad which enjoyed the club's best season in nearly 20 years, having finished sixth in the Championship.

They have not lost any of their senior players and look likely to add at least a couple of new faces this summer.

Given that solid base to work from and an impressive win percentage across his career, it's a very interesting appointment and one that seems to have grabbed the imagination of City fans.

Gerhard Struber is the man Bristol City have appointed to replace Liam Manning as head coach at Ashton Gate, but is he the right choice?

The Austrian guided Barnsley to Championship safety in 2020 but has had mixed fortunes since leaving Oakwell.

His last job was at Cologne where he was sacked in May even though they were second in the second tier with two games remaining and went on to win the title.

Do you think this is a good appointment or is there someone else you would have preferred?

Let us know what you think here.

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City are set to appoint former FC Cologne, Red Bull Salzburg and Barnsley boss Gerhard Struber, 48, as their new head coach. (Telegraph), external

Take a look at Tuesday's full gossip column to see the latest transfer news and rumours from the EFL

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