Goal-shy Robins made to pay the price for lack of creativity
Five talking points from Bristol City’s defeat to Preston, by Adam Goodwin
FORMER Bristol City loanee Callum Robinson scored the only goal as Preston beat Bristol City 1-0 in Saturday’s Championship game at Ashton Gate.
Robinson, who played six times for City during his loan spell at Ashton Gate, had the easy job of tucking the ball in at the back post after nice work from Daniel Johnson ten minutes before half-time.
Lee Johnson started with a 3-5-2 formation – but, after City failed to have a shot on target in the first half, he quickly changed back to a more familiar 4-4-2 just before the hour mark.
City’s only shot on target was a free-kick that was tipped over the crossbar by Preston goalkeeper Declan Rudd with ten minutes left.
Here’s some of the main talking points to emerge from City’s third successive league defeat, which has dropped them to 13th in the table.
Formation tweak JOHNSON opted against his trusted 4-4-2 formation and returned to a less familiar 3-5-2.
He has played three at the back a couple of times this season, most recently in the 2-1 defeat by Sheffield Wednesday, and clearly likes to have two strikers at the top of the pitch.
Unfortunately, it didn’t change their fortunes in front of goal as they drew another blank.
The Robins had just one shot on target all afternoon – that Brownhill free-kick which was tipped over the bar – and they failed to create any clear-cut chances throughout the game.
Preston back to haunt City BEFORE Saturday’s game, Preston were unbeaten in their last six league games (four wins and two draws) at Ashton Gate and Johnson hadn’t beaten Preston in his last