Five players who could command sizeable fees - should City be willing to sell
NIGEL Pearson wants to make significant changes this summer in order to change the culture of Bristol City, while also instating his authority and identity on the team after a season of disappointment.
With 13 first-team players out of contract that presents an obvious opportunity to alter major elements of the squad, while also potentially freeing up wages to pursue other options.
Pearson will be backed by the Lansdowns but the likelihood is that will be in procedural terms, more so than financial as Covid-19, the loss of revenues and overall downturn in the economic landscape of football, means the manager will have to be, as he’s said himself, “creative”.
Last summer, the Robins only paid one transfer fee for a player the £1.25 million arrival of Joe Williams from Wigan, signed from a club in administration and therefore at a bargain price, relative to his talent. This summer is likely to be similar, albeit with Pearson afforded slightly more flexibility, but one obvious avenue for the club to explore - as much as it may annoy supporters - is selling talent to raise funds.
It’s a process which has underpinned the club’s transfer ethos under the Lansdowns, albeit with mixed results as while the selling has been largely exemplary, City have often found it difficult to replace the individuals they move on for profit.
City’s miserable season and league position hasn’t exactly promoted the squad, so to speak, with a number of individuals potentially taking themselves out of the shop window, given their overall poor performance levels. But Pearson does have a few options, that could generate significant fees and help his restructuring and rebuilding of the first-team squad.
TYREEQ BAKINSON
AMONG City’s breakout players this season, as the midfielder built on his fine loan at Plymouth in 2019-20 by making 20 Championship starts, having been moved into the first-team picture by Dean Holden.
Bakinson is a tailor-made Championship midfielder who possesses solid passing, good drive from the centre of the pitch, physicality and is developing his long-range shooting and overall attacking attributes.
At 22, he also has an enticing ceiling for potential scouts, given this was his first full campaign in the Championship.
Bakinson is under contract until 2022, with the option of a further year, so City can name their price to an extent, depending on what interest there may be.
In terms of the market, the Premier League probably seems a jump too far at present for Bakinson, who probably needs another season in the second tier to improve his consistency. But an upwardly mobile Championship club, potentially one of the three relegated from the top flight, would make some sense. Due to parachute payments they would also have the spending power that their Championship contemporaries would lack.
DAN BENTLEY
BRISTOL City’s player of the season and, arguably, the most important individual among the playing squad at present; there’s a reason why he’s front and centre of the adverts for season card sales.
Bentley has been watched by Premier League clubs, Southampton among them, and has made it clear his desire is to play in the top flight. It was one of the reasons which motivated him to swap Brentford for Bristol City as he felt the Robins have a greater chance of getting there. Two seasons and two third-place finishes later for the Bees, he may be wanting to review that.
Nevertheless, Bentley has proven an excellent signing for City, costing around £3 million, and has two years remaining on his contract at Ashton Gate.
In looking at the status of the 19 clubs (plus play-off winners) who will contest the Premier League next season you could argue that Crystal Palace, Southampton and, potentially, Watford are the only three realistic options in terms of clubs who may be in the market for a ‘keeper and would look to Bentley. It’s not a huge range of clubs although much could change - nor are they traditionally big payers, before you bring Covid-19 into the equation, plus goalkeepers tend to command modest fees, relative to their outfield counterparts.
Of course, Bentley will have some interest, such has been the quality of his campaign but as a saleable asset to generate a serious fee, he’s perhaps not one to rely on.
TOMAS KALAS
IT’S been a strange season for Kalas who recovered from the injury issues which blighted his 2019-20 campaign, and was arguably one of the major reasons why the Robins failed in their play-off mission, to start 38 of 46 Championship fixtures.
It would have been 39 had he not been left out against Brentford on the final day of the season, a decision which has left a slight cloud of uncertainty, as Pearson said he needed a rest following a poor display against Millwall, having previously said he was keen for a reaction from his captain.
At the risk of stating the obvious, Kalas is the best defender at the club and is more than capable of anchoring a promotion-winning backline; as he has proved previously at Fulham and Middlesbrough. The question is: does Pearson, based on the evidence he has seen so far, think so?
He may well sit in the middle because, ultimately, at the age of 27 and a full Czech Republic interna
tional about to play in the European Championships, Kalas has a potential market far beyond England - like many on this list.
He is understood to have turned down offers from outside the Championship to sign for City permanently two years ago and that interest won’t have totally dimmed, especially as his price-tag will now likely have shrunk.
But that also leaves the Robins with something of a potentially political decision: would they really want to let their record signing go for a fee below the £7.5m they paid Chelsea, at the supposed peak of his powers?
HAN-NOAH MASSENGO
AFTER uncertainty over his longterm future at the start of the campaign, as he simply couldn’t force his way into the team and very nearly ended up at Birmingham City on loan, Massengo enjoyed a fine end to the season.
Playing with greater confidence and freedom on the field, the France youth international is one of the few individuals who has notably improved since Pearson’s arrival.
The fact that the manager has singled him out for praise on more than one occasion, as the example for others to follow, is notable. Especially given Pearson’s reluctance to display such public affection for one of his own players.
You would conclude therefore that Pearson wouldn’t want to lose Massengo who, at 19, is a serious prospect with a sizeable talent level that City have only just scratched the surface of.
Logic dictates that he will move on at some stage and while fanciful links to Arsenal and Dortmund in the past may be too large of a jump, certainly there’s enough raw materials there to credibly say he can be a Premier League player.
Unlike Bentley, whose position is deeply specialised and unique but also (perhaps unfairly) limited in transfer value, defensive midfielders
are always highly sought-after and there are a number of clubs you could imagine taking an interest in Massengo.
That said, despite his impressive conclusion to the campaign, can you really envisage him as a Premier League starting midfielder right now, like Josh Brownhill, probably not. Which means he’d be a squad option/long-term project for any prospective suitors.
The likelihood is that it’s probably at least a transfer window too soon for Massengo, who needs a full and consistent campaign under his belt. But if City do need to make a sale, somebody out there could get a real bargain. Which, from City’s perspective, would be regrettable.
ANTOINE SEMENYO
THE forward has now established himself as a major first-team player after two seasons of threatening to break through where he’s had to be patient and build up his football IQ and hone his skillset.
Semenyo is still very raw but the maddening decision-making of 12-18 months ago isn’t so frequent and his work rate and commitment off the ball - which was regularly, and unfairly, highlighted by some fans as the sign of a lazy player - has been impressive.
Crystal Palace were credited with an interest earlier this year and the Eagles have a recent history of looking for value in the Championship, with Ebere Eze being the most notable example.
Semenyo, under contract until 2023, isn’t quite at that level yet but has a wide range of attributes and ability, married with the right attitude, that would certainly appeal to coaches and clubs who want to build and develop players - Southampton also come to mind.
If someone in the division above really does like Semenyo, and is willing to pay double figures for the 21-year-old, he could well be the most likely to move on from the players on this list.