It feels like rinse and repeat with Bristol City at the moment, one step forward followed by two steps back and in their 2-0 defeat to Reading on Saturday, it felt a lot more than a couple of steps backwards but a return instead to their worst habits.
So much of what was on show could’ve been a repeat of the worst moments from the defeats at the hands of Millwall and Birmingham City with Nigel Pearson suggesting his players were, “daydreaming and looking for someone else to blame.”
If we’re being quite honest, the away side were incredibly fortunate to get into the break level having been far from their best and if we’re being completely accurate it didn’t ever get much better.
A triple change sparked a slight bit of life into proceedings in the second half but did little truly affect the game as goals from Mamadou Louam and Andy Carroll ensured the Robins were unable to build on the three points taken on their travels this week.
Consistency is key in the Championship, and nobody knows that more than Pearson himself, but with four league games between now and the World Cup break City will need to get their act together to take a good run into that break.
But away from the returning sense of frustration, here are the moments missed from Saturday’s trip along the M4.
Travelling Tinnion
There was a great travelling contingent at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, that name never gets any catchier does it, on Saturday and although they witnessed a pretty dire display from the Robins.
In last year’s fixture when City ran out 3-2 winners, joining the away end was Callum O’Dowda and this year there was another, slightly more decorated, former Reds winger among the supporters in Brian Tinnion.
The City legend was stationed dead centre of the travelling crowd alongside son Jay and was spotted early in the warm-up by a number of supporters who came over to take plenty of pictures with Tinnion.
It’s safe to say the now academy director was as frustrated as everyone else stationed in the red corner of the ground, waving his hands in the air in frustration whenever City failed to string together a set of passes or misplaced a corner.
For the former Newcastle midfielder, there could be some happiness taken from the day, with academy graduates Antoine Semenyo, Tommy Conway, Zak Vyner, Max O’Leary and Alex Scott all now fully fledged first team regulars.
More transport changes
So far this season we’ve had the travel hijinks of the City coach breaking down in Hull, the Carabao Cup game against Coventry being moved to Burton and a traffic jam at West Brom causing the team to take an extended walk to the Hawthorns.
Maybe after the Robins played so well against the Baggies, Pearson thought the extended walk to the ground was a good luck charm, with the City coach parking up a fair walk away from the Select Car Leasing Stadium.
This left a line of City fans who were patiently waiting by the player’s entrance disappointed as the City players snuck in a different entrance to that utilised by the home side.
Sadly, the performance against Paul Ince’s Royals was much more akin to that of the second half at Hull City than the cup thumping of Coventry or hard-fought win in the Midlands on Wednesday. The Robins will be looking forward to the creature comforts of Ashton Gate next Saturday.
Ain't nobody like Dan Bentley
We’ve pointed out repeatedly in the last few weeks that Dan Bentley has had a difficult period, being left out of the starting eleven since the Robins’ horrific display against Birmingham City.
But there was a moment of appreciation for the City captain from the vocal travelling fans as he took part in the warm-up, a chorus of “ain't nobody, like Dan Bentley!” echoing from the slowly filling seats.
Stood inside the penalty area, Bentley turned to the fans and stood applauding their chants with an almost smile across his face. Pearson earlier in the week said that the captain was “grumpy” having been dropped and while we’re no body language experts he hasn’t looked best pleased.
His future looks uncertain with his contract up in June 2023 and with Max O’Leary still looking positive between the sticks for the Robins, as well as the looming frame of Stefan Bajic waiting in the wings, Bentley’s time on the bench may well be prolonged.
James demanding more from Sykes
If you didn’t know that Mark Sykes had been a winger before joining Bristol City, you’d be surprised he wasn’t a natural full-back as he seems much more defence first ahead of bombing down the wings.
While Jay Dasilva spent much of the first half fairly far forward on the left-wing, when the ball was fed into the forwards there was often unoccupied space on the opposing flank with Sykes more in line with Vyner and Timm Klose.
Late in the second half as Scott drove with the ball he looked to the right for his full-back to overlap, while the former Oxford United man was caught on his heels, Matty James bellowed at his teammate to get forward and it seemed to work.
The second half saw Sykes spend more time in the final third, coming as close to a goal as anyone from the away side when his driven effort smashed into the side netting.
He seems to be much more confident in bombing forward when Andreas Weimann and Chris Martin are ahead of him, as shown by his best performance in pre-season against Forest Green Rovers. Maybe having that focal point in the middle of the pitch allows him to pass and move into space with a bit more ease.
Reading fan's heroics at half-time
To be quite honest it sums up how disappointing a day it was for City on Saturday that the Reading fan involved in their half time challenge may well have had more fun during the break than anyone donning red.
The lucky Royals fan had to take three shots into a slightly smaller than eleven aside goal and he may have been able to do a job for City as he managed to pick out the net with absolute ease.
His celebration that followed was possibly more overstated than either demonstrated by Louam or Carroll and he ran off into the penalty area much to the hilarity of the Royals fans sat around us.
Sadly, those who follow City have had similar trips where the highlights have come from half-time entertainment, whether it be the fan at The Den who managed to hit the crossbar with every attempt or even some really pitiful attempts at the now-defunct Dunder half-time challenge.
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