Bristol hopeful despite narrow loss to City
Australian Socceroos defender Bailey Wright’s English League Cup hopes remain alive after he captained Bristol City to a 2-1 semifinal first-leg League Cup loss to powerhouse Manchester City.
The English Premier League frontrunners needed a late Sergio Aguero winner to claim the advantage at Etihad Stadium yesterday.
Wright put in a mixed performance in largely keeping City’s starstudded attack quiet, but was on the wrong side of Aguero when the substitute headed home two minutes into stoppage time.
Despite the late lapse, the Australian remained confident of an upset in the second leg at home.
‘‘We’ve knocked out four, five good sides to get to this this stage,’’ Wright said. ‘‘If that doesn’t give you enough belief, I don’t know what does.
‘‘After that performance, I think we’ll have even more belief. The lads were superb and dug in. We’re still in this. We know we’ve got a great chance to progress.’’
Second-tier Bristol gave City a stern test throughout the encounter and deserved to take something from the game and their away goal may give them some hope for the return at Ashton Gate.
They took the lead through a Bobby Reid penalty after 44 minutes, having initially struggled to gain possession.
Pep Guardiola’s runaway Premier League leaders responded by creating numerous chances before Kevin De Bruyne’s well-worked 55th-minute equaliser.
De Bruyne charged the length of the field before exchanging passes with Raheem Sterling and thumping home the leveller.
It prompted Lee Johnson’s Bristol to sit back for an opportunity to cling on for a draw, with the tactic working out until Aguero had the final say.