City are sliding further from safety – talking points from Bristol loss
DEFENSIVE IMPROVEMENTS
Despite another bad result leaving City four points adrift of safety and off the bottom of the table by goal difference alone, Nigel Adkins has every right to point to the performance at Ashton Gate. The late loss was particularly hard to take given the Tigers performed well for 90 minutes, kept Bristol City quiet for large periods of the game and created numerous chances to see off their hosts on the night. The latter will be a cause of frustration for the head coach, but he will be pleased with the improvement his side have shown at the back in recent weeks. Since switching to a three-man defence following the heavy defeat to Reading, the Tigers have found a mean streak at the back and it was only after Jordy de Wijs and Reece Burke had been taken off through injury that Bristol eventually broke their resolve. On another night it could easily have been a different outcome, but City don’t appear to be too far away from beginning to keep clean sheets.
CAUSE FOR CONCERN
While the display was encouraging, City still found a way to lose the game through a late Famara Diedhiou effort, which Eric Lichaj was unable to keep out, despite his best efforts. It spelt the club’s seventh successive game without a victory, their fifth straight defeat on the road and ensured the club will spend at least the rest of the month in the relegation zone. No matter which way you look at it, that’s worrying. The Championship is as unpredictable as it is testing, but looking down the fixture list it is now impossible to pinpoint where the Tigers’ next win is coming from. While improvements to shore up the back have been made, City’s form paints a convincing picture of a team in real trouble.
GROSICKI FINDING HIS FEET
So often a source of frustration for City fans, never have the Tigers needed Grosicki more than they do now. After coming so close to a move away in the summer, the Polish international has clawed his way back from the wilderness and into the City starting XI in recent weeks and he turned in another encouraging performance at Ashton Gate. More is still to come from Grosicki, who on his day has the ability to light up any contest, but he made a habit of causing problems on the night and had he been sharper he may well have celebrated a goal within the opening five minutes. The winger has done enough to cement his spot in the side and despite not being able to make a lasting impact as of yet, he is on an upward trajectory.
INJURIES PILING UP
Nigel Adkins claimed he did not know the full extent of the injuries that forced Reece Burke and Jordy de Wijs off the field of play in the second half, but he will be hoping they can shake the problems off in time to face Bolton Wanderers tomorrow. With Angus Macdonald already on the sidelines with a calf problem, while Ondrej Mazuch has not played this campaign after picking up a knee injury in a pre-season friendly, City could be left with just one senior centre-back. De Wijs and Burke could be set to join a list of absentees that has swelled in recent weeks and also includes Markus Henriksen, Stephen Kingsley, Jon Toral, Evandro and James Weir. The extremities of Adkins’ squad are now being stretched with Max Sheaf and Brandon Fleming being named on the bench at Ashton Gate as the club’s wasted summer begins to take effect.
MIND THE GAP
Four points now stand between City and safety after results elsewhere saw the Tigers fall further behind in the race for survival. Only 14 games have been played but already the pressure is mounting and tomorrow’s trip to Bolton Wanderers looks like a six-pointer. The Whites have won one of their last ten games in the Championship and were beaten 3-0 at home to Nottingham Forest on Wednesday as they slide closer to the drop zone, which they climbed out of on the final day of last season. City still sit seven points behind them, but both will be down at the bottom come the end of the season and the club can simply not afford to return from a trip to the University of Bolton Stadium empty handed.