Bristol City

Richard Angell
Forever Bristol City Podcast

Remember the five pillars? Bristol City fans have been sold enough plans to fill a boardroom. What we rarely seem to get is sustained progress on the pitch.

After all the huffing and puffing, money spent and another managerial appointment, will we finish in our familiar position of 12th? Right now, even that would mean climbing the table.

The comparison with last season is uncomfortable.

After 11 league games, five fewer points, seven fewer goals scored and four more conceded. Five defeats against two. That is regression, whatever language the club chooses to wrap around it.

City have committed a reported £9m to Dom Ballard and Lorent Tolaj. Why can't Scott Twine play behind them when everyone is fit? I appreciate Tolaj has been injured, but spending that money demands a convincing explanation if the preferred formation leaves one on the bench.

Did we recruit these forwards to build an attack around them, or buy them and then wonder how they fit?

Watching the ball hoofed towards Ballard makes it harder to defend. Give him service he can use and team-mates close enough to combine with him. Hopeful balls forward make life easier for opposition defenders.

The uncertainty started against Millwall on the opening day. Why spend pre-season developing an approach, then change it when competitive football begins? Adam Randell's dismissal did not explain the decisions made before kick-off.

Over the opening 10 league games, there was only one unchanged starting XI, four central starts for Twine and two starts together for Ballard and Tolaj. Injuries force changes, but they cannot explain why every selection prevents recognisable partnerships developing.

Image source, Getty Images

After defeat by Sheffield United, Michael Skubala admitted City could not handle opponents playing more directly but this is the Championship where coping with physical football is a basic requirement. Hearing that after a summer's preparation should set alarm bells ringing.

Jason Knight's suggestion that City needed to ensure it was "just one of those days" offered little reassurance after successive home defeats without scoring. His interview quite rightly drew criticism. Supporters deserve more conviction from their captain.

Swansea decided performances under Alan Sheehan were unacceptable, appointed Vitor Matos with a clear attacking brief and now lead the Championship. Change guarantees nothing. Neither does protecting disappointing football with another long-term plan.

For me, patience has evaporated. City cannot keep spending money, changing managers and asking supporters to lower their expectations.

Communication when things have gone wrong has too often been poor. With changes to the executive structure, those now responsible must explain their decisions and accept scrutiny.

Skubala needs to get more from this squad. If he cannot, those who appointed him must be prepared to act.

Is promotion genuinely the ambition, or will another season drifting towards 12th be quietly considered acceptable?

We asked for your thoughts after Sheffield United overcame Bristol City 1-0 at Ashton Gate on Saturday - inflicting a fourth defeat in six home games on the Robins.

Here are some of your comments:

Bristol City fans

Chris: League One manager and signings. Time for Skubala to go. You can't play League One football in the Championship.

Brian: Need to improve as terrible home form is disturbing to say the least.

Peter: Dark days.

Alan: Bullied for much of the game. City's better moments spoiled by a very poor referee! Both sides were very poor!

Image source, Shutterstock

Sheffield United fans

Michael: A proper Blades away win. Quality goal, could have had another (at least). Defended really well, kept shots on goal to almost zero. Kalvin Phillips masterclass - if he stays fit then the Blades can impact the top eight, no doubt.

Tom: A great team effort and an all-round brilliant performance - hopefully we can continue like this for the rest of the season and who knows, we may nick a play-off spot if we're lucky!

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Bristol City boss Michael Skubala spoke to BBC Radio Bristol after his side's 1-0 defeat by Sheffield United.

"We lost too many duels in the first half, they looked too physical for us.

"You have to score first, we have a big chance to score and we don't.

"We weren't in the right structure for the free-kick, people haven't quite done their jobs. After that we looked a bit shaky.

"At half-time I thought 'I need to change the feel of this game'. We were getting beat up too much.

"Teams are coming here and being more direct and we don't seem to be able to handle that at the moment."

Image source, Opta

Bristol City and Sheffield United will seek to get back to winning ways and close on the play-off places when they meet at Ashton Gate on Saturday (15:00 BST).

The inconsistent Robins have taken four points from their past five league games to slip to 12th, two points outside the play-off places and went down 1-0 at home to Blackburn on Tuesday, despite dominating much of the game.

The Blades battled back from 2-0 down with 10-men to level at Portsmouth the following night, only to fall to a last-gasp winner, their fourth defeat in five games in all competitions.

• Bristol City won home and away against Sheffield United in the Championship last season, but have never won three in a row against the Blades in league competition.

• After losing this exact fixture last season 1-0, Sheffield United are looking to avoid losing successive league visits to Bristol City for the first time since losing four in a row from 1989 to 2007.

• Bristol City have alternated between winning and losing across their last nine home league games (W4 L5), losing their last 1-0 against Blackburn in midweek.

• Sheffield United have lost their past two away Championship matches, as many defeats as across their prior 11 combined (W5 D4).

• This season in the Championship, only West Ham (9) have scored more goals from set pieces (incl. penalties) than Bristol City (7). The Robins also rank second for goals scored from corners specifically (4), behind only the Hammers (6).

David Pottier
Fan writer

Tuesday night under the lights at Ashton Gate proved to be a game of two goalkeepers.

Blackburn's Hungarian stopper Balazs Toth was man of the match with a string of fine saves while at the other end, Sam Tickle read the flight of Oladapo Afolayan's shot all wrong for what proved to be the goal that separated the sides.

City should have been, and deserved to be, two goals in front after a bright opening spell but Dom Ballard could only watch in frustration as Toth saved a shot and clawed away a header destined for the top corner.

That result leaves City in their customary mid-table position with 10 games played, but such is the compactness of the division a win would have put them joint third and a chance to consolidate that with another home game to come against Sheffield United on Saturday.

Where most matches are decided by fine margins, will City have an advantage with the Blades having one fewer recovery day through playing their midweek game away at Southampton on Wednesday?

Image source, Getty Images

The atmosphere at Ashton Gate was very flat on Tuesday and it is certainly no fortress for the home team. The crowd have hardly been lifted by the fact that in the six games played there this season, City have found the net just three times.

Patience is not a word you associate with football but the fans are showing it as they watch manager Michael Skubala come to terms with the rigours of Championship football which is more tactically demanding than League One where he enjoyed success with Lincoln last season.

By City's standards, Skubala was heavily backed in the summer transfer window but there will be few dissenters to my own view that he does not yet seem to know what his best starting XI is while at the same time being wedded to a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Defensively, City seem quite sound but with Joe Williams injured, Jason Knight clearly with his mind on where he will be playing next season and Adam Randell not replicating anything like his form of last season, the engine room of the team is in disarray.

Up front, there is a case for playing both Lorent Tolaj (when fit) and Ballard, who, combined, cost in excess of £8m in the summer.

The former Orient striker could play behind Tolaj but then where does that leave star man Scott Twine when you have Jed Wallace, Sam Greenwood, Tomi Horvat and Yu Hirakawa also competing for the remaining two positions?

This Bristol City squad IS stronger than last season, but it is lacking in that their depth only allows them two sides of 11 of equal ability rather than one first-team where those picks are very good and the back-ups can do a job.

After the 1-0 defeat to Blackburn Rovers at Ashton Gate, Bristol City head coach Michael Skubala spoke to BBC Radio Bristol.

"It's really frustrating from our point of view - we're a little bit sore.

"Tonight we created more than enough, first 25 or 30 minutes we were on top of the game, had some big chances, corners and set-pieces were working well and we didn't put it away.

"All of a sudden we get caught out of nothing and it felt soft, if I'm honest, it felt too easy the way it went in.

"Very frustrating, it felt like we were on top. They hit us with a sucker punch and you think 'how are we 1-0 down in this game?' In reality we haven't been good enough in both boxes."

For more of Skubala's post-match comments in written form, click here.

Returning Bristol City centre-back Luke McNally looked "really composed", said manager Michael Skubala, as he played his first 90 minutes of competitive football in 20 months.

McNally played all of the 1-1 Championship draw against Charlton Athletic on Saturday, his first official appearance for the club since suffering a serious knee injury in February 2025.

"I thought he looked really composed. You saw what quality he had, how well he wants to defend - he's first and foremost a great defender," Skubala told BBC Radio Bristol.

"He's physically worked really hard on himself. He's worked really hard in the gym, he's worked really hard on his rehab, he's been training since pre-season with us, so he's been growing his physical capacity through the last few months - credit to him."

The 27-year-old sustained an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury to his knee but faced repeated setbacks during his recovery which prolonged his time on the sidelines.

"Credit to him, the medical team, the physical team - it's a long time to be out as a footballer and all they want to do is get on the football pitch," Skubala said.

"But to see him at Crystal Palace [during a friendly] do very well, to see him at Charlton against a physical team do very well, it's amazing. The human side of it is sometimes more important than the player side of it, but I thought he had a great game."

The club are still waiting more information on the injury that kept Joe Williams out of the side at the weekend, although Skubala said they are hopeful "if he's out it's weeks, not months".

Image source, Opta

Bristol City and Blackburn will both hope to close in on the play-off places when they meet in the Championship at Ashton Gate on Tuesday night.

The Robins drew 1-1 at Charlton on Saturday and have won just won of their past four games (D1 L2) but despite sitting 10th, they are still level on points with the five teams above them.

Rovers beat Cardiff 2-1 at the weekend to extend their unbeaten run to three matches (W2 D1) and will start the evening three places and two points below City.

• Bristol City have alternated between defeat (3 times) and victory (3 times) in their past six Championship games against Blackburn Rovers, winning 2-1 most recently in February.

• After winning this exact fixture 1-0 last season, Blackburn could win back-to-back league visits to Bristol City for just the second time, after December 2015.

• Bristol City have alternated between losing (4) and winning (4) their previous eight home league games, beating Watford 1-0 most recently. The Robins are yet to win successive Championship matches at Ashton Gate since the start of 2026.

• Blackburn are yet to win away from home in the Championship this season (D3 L1) despite leading in two of their four matches.

• Blackburn's Tony Mowbray has won just two of his past 15 league games against Bristol City (D6 L7), failing to win his previous six (D3 L3) since a 3-1 victory with Rovers in June 2020.

Image source, Getty Images

Bristol City manager Michael Skubala spoke to BBC Radio Bristol after his side draw 1-1 at Charlton Athletic to maintain their fine recent run.

For a written selection of his quotes, click here.

Image source, Getty Images

Striker Ephraim Yeboah has returned to Bristol City after a short loan spell with Southend United.

The 20-year-old joined the National League side at the end of September on a 28-day deal but has returned early after playing once, coming on as a substitute in their defeat by Barrow.

It is ninth against eighth in the Championship at The Valley on Saturday as Charlton Athletic meet Bristol City (12:30 BST).

The Addicks go into the game without a win from their past five games while City snapped a two-match losing streak by beating Watford 1-0 last time out.

• Charlton have won one of their past six league games against Bristol City (D2 L3), a 3-2 victory in December 2019.

• Following a 2-1 win at Charlton last season, Bristol City are hoping to win consecutive away league games against the Addicks for the first time.

• Charlton Athletic have kept three consecutive home league clean sheets, with their past two games at The Valley ending 0-0. Burnley, in January 2025, were the last Championship side to have three 0-0s at home in a row.

• Bristol City have won four of their past six league games, as many as they managed in their previous 17 games combined (D5 L8).

• Bristol City's Rio Cardines has created the most chances (31) and assisted the most goals (6) in the Championship this season.

The latest episode of BBC Radio Bristol's Sound of the City podcast is out now.

Bristol City's new Under-21s coach Louis Carey joins the show to discuss returning to his hometown club, his coaching journey so far, plans for the academy and bringing joy through football.

Listen below or on BBC Sounds here - and don't forget to subscribe to get each episode into your My Sounds feed.

Image source, Bristol City FC

Bristol City have appointed Ben King as their new set-piece coach.

The 35-year-old joins after a spell as a set-piece analyst with Sheffield Wednesday and has also previously taken positions as head of coaching at Accrington Stanley and as Walsall's under-18s coach.

"We know his [King's] expertise can help us at both ends of the pitch and we are looking forward to working together and improving even further on our already strong set pieces," head coach Michael Skubala told the club website, external.

The Robins are currently the Championship's joint top scorers from set pieces, alongside West Ham United, with six goals which is more than half of their overall goal tally (11).

Skubala's Lincoln City side last season were also the joint top set-piece scorers in League One, with 30 goals.

Image source, Shutterstock

Bristol City wide player Elijah Morrison has signed a new deal to stay at Ashton Gate until the summer of 2028.

The 20-year-old, who has been capped by England's Under-18s, has made five appearances for the Robins, four coming as a substitute in the Championship.

He made his first City start in the EFL Cup first round win over Milton Keynes Dons in August 2025 and spent part of last season on loan at National League side Forest Green Rovers.

"Elijah is a great talent and one we're excited to keep at the club," head coach Michael Skubala told the club website.

"He's energetic, hard-working and deserving of a new contract. It's a big opportunity for him and we're excited to support his journey and see how far he can go."

David Pottier
Fan writer

Bristol City's attempts to get back to the top flight after an absence of 46 years have got off to a better than expected start.

They go into the first international break with 13 points from eight games.

It leaves them in eighth place and if they are still there after 46 games then under the new qualifying format they will be in the play-offs for the second time in three years.

Right now the fanbase seem more unified than they have been for a while.

I do not hear too many murmurs of dissatisfaction about this being a "Three Year Project" under the much changed leadership structure fronted by Michael Skubala, with a professional team behind him in sporting director James Ellis, chief executive Charlie Boss plus the increasingly (I'm sure) influential former Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore, who formally joined the board last year.

Football supporters across the country are renowned for their impatience so an apparent acceptance of City not making it to the top flight at the first time of asking under this new regime is a rare quality the club's ownership should be grateful for.

That being said I am probably not alone in casting an envious eye in the direction of Bournemouth, Brentford, and Brighton who, last week, proved their credentials as worthy of having their place at football's top table.

Image source, Shutterstock

Bournemouth secured an impressive away result in their first ever competitive game in Europe against Real Sociedad in the Europa League. Meanwhile Brentford and Brighton humbled Chelsea and Arsenal in emphatic wins that saw their opponents scoreless.

For most of my 60 years supporting this club, the trio of Bournemouth, Brentford and Brighton I have always considered inferior.

The Cherries still have a stadium more the size of a League One ground, while it's not so long ago that the Bees were playing at the compact Griffin Park and Brighton at the infamous Withdean Stadium.

How have these clubs achieved their current status, which looks like being maintained for the foreseeable future?

As I see it the Cherries had a good manager in Eddie Howe who, in his second spell at the club took them out of League One and into the Championship, where they consolidated for one season before winning the title in 2014-15.

However, the club achieved that feat by breaking the Financial Fair Play rules that were in place at that time and they negotiated the initial £7.6m fine for doing so down to £4.75m – a small price to pay in view of the riches that followed their promotion.

Brentford and Brighton have adopted a very different approach and that is a reliance on data when it comes to player recruitment.

The south coast side took this approach to the maximum when in November 2024 they dismissed the majority of their traditional scouting staff, reducing their full-time scout operation to three people. In doing that they decided that the algorithmic approach to making player recruitment decisions was more reliable than the human eye.

Clearly talent acquisition in football has moved on from the manager taking a final check on a prospective target in person on a cold wet night in Stoke.

Through the viewing multiple times of performance enhancing YouTube video clips to this now data led approach, it will be interesting to see if, one day, City end up doing something similar.

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

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