DAVID CONNOLLY
Our guest columnist looks at how Bristol City have cleverly rebuilt
WHILE a host of Championship sides take a rest this weekend, Bristol City are attempting to reach the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with Wolves standing in the way.
This is a fixture I have fond memories of as I scored four goals in a 6-1 win for Wolves at Ashton Gate in 1998, although the game was remembered most for the half-time scrap between the mascots the three piggies of Bristol came to blows with Wolfie of Wolves!
I doubt there will be as much action off the pitch this afternoon, though I believe the match will be a much closer affair with City in redhot form.
The Robins are flying under Lee Johnson and an upset here would not be too much of a surprise.
They are currently on a nine-game winning run in all competitions and the goal they conceded against QPR in midweek was only their second in 2019.
Remarkable
That is all the more remarkable considering they lost half their back line in the summer with left-back Joe Bryan joining Premier League Fulham and centre-back Aden Flint moving to Middlesbrough.
With striker Bobby Reid also departing for Cardiff, there would have been a few who anticipated a season of consolidation for Johnson, as the best part of 30 goals left the side.
If you look among the top scorers in the division, there won’t be a City player anywhere near the top, which shows you what a great job they have done to share the goals around.
If they had been able to get another 20-goal-a-season striker as they had with Tammy Abraham or Reid, they would probably be challenging for a top two finish.
However, some clever loan signings have plugged the gaps with the likes of defenders Tomas Kalas and Jay Dasilva, both Chelsea, filling in nicely alongside academy graduate Lloyd Kelly.
Adam Webster has shown he can be a capable replacement for Flint. He hasn’t contributed the same number of goals, but he has enabled City to progress up the pitch with his superb ball skills .
With Reid now gone, Famara Diedhiou has mostly played up top on his own in a 4-1-4-1 formation and the target man is vital to how the Robins play.
He was banned for the first six games this season for spitting, which was a real blow, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he ended up being as successful as Jonathan Kodjia, now Villa.
Successful
Diedhiou joined from Angers, like Kodjia, and although he hasn’t been as prolific yet, I do feel the goals will come and he is the base on which Johnson builds his team around.
With the likes of Callum O’Dowda and Josh Brownhill playing ahead of Marlon Pack, who patrols in front of the back four, there is plenty of craft and guile to open teams up.
It’s going to be an exciting end to the season at Ashton Gate. Heading into the weekend, the Robins were up to fifth in the Championship and looking a good bet for the play-offs.
But this afternoon they can put all their focus on the FA Cup. If they can get the better of Wolves, they will be through to the last eight and just one game away from Wembley. There’s all to play for.