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Bristol Post
Bristol Post
Sport
Richard Forrester

Bristol City manager Nigel Pearson reveals Tomas Kalas' injury status ahead of Birmingham

Nigel Pearson has confirmed centre-back Tomas Kalas is fit and braced to start in Saturday's Championship contest with Birmingham City at Ashton Gate.

The Czech international gave the manager a scare during the defeat to Nottingham Forest after heading off with 10 minutes left to play leaving Bristol City to see out the game with 10-men.

Immediately after the game, Pearson couldn't provide any details on his injury leaving the Robins with a potential conundrum at centre-back, given the lack of senior options in the position. But the manager has eased any fears confirming he has trained this week and will is almost certainly set to start against Lee Bowyer's side.

In his pre-match press conference, Pearson said: "He's fine, he's trained this week and he's recovered so he'll be available to be selected, as they say. It was a kick, when he came off the pitch and he was alongside me I just said 'go and sit there.'

"He wanted to go back on but I thought it's not worth putting him at risk further but we didn't know what it was at that point. He's fine, he's got his singular smile back on his face."

There was also a positive update on Rob Atkinson with Pearson admitting he is also in contention to feature on Saturday. The 23-year-old hasn't played since his 16-minute cameo at home to Cardiff in January after an initial back issue later turned into a calf injury.

Atkinson was a regular fixture in the defence in the early part of the season, following his £1.6m summer arrival from Oxford United, but suffered a drop in form, relating to his fitness after an illness in October, and has struggled ever since.

"Rob Atkinson has looked pretty good in training so he may be in my thoughts for the weekend in some way or another," Pearson added. "We've got players who are making progress which is good for us because I think going into the last 11 games of the season, it would be nice to have a few solid options."

George Tanner is closing in on a return to action and the club teased supporters of his potential comeback to the squad following a video posted showing him training with the first-team.

The right-back has been a big miss following a recurring hamstring injury picked up before the New Year and Pearson dampened expectations that he'll be back in the matchday squad in the near future emphasising the need to be cautious with his fitness.

Rob Atkinson of Bristol City goes off injured against Cardiff (Rogan/JMP)

When quizzed whether a return was on the cards, Pearson responded: "Not imminently, as you know he's had a recurrence of a hamstring injury so we'll be careful with that one and he looks okay, seems to be dealing with it in a very positive way.

"When he'll be back in the squad, I'm not going to give any time frame because I'm not overly sure it will depend on how he continues to develop."

Pearson confirmed Max O'Leary is available for selection following his absence since the defeat at Swansea but Dan Bentley's form in goal means he is likely to keep his spot. "He's in there, stay there" was the message from the manager when asked whether it's now the captain's shirt to lose.

One player who certainly won't feature is veteran right-back Danny Simpson. His last appearance came in October and it appears he won't be seen in a City shirt again as Pearson was bullish in his stance over the veteran's future.

He said: "No, he's not (part of my plans) - I'm always thinking of both the present and future. Danny's had a frustrating season on a personal level for him, so that's life."

In regards to midfielder Matty James, who made his eagerly anticipated return last weekend for the first time in eight weeks, Pearson has no concerns regarding managing his minutes like he's had to do with team-mate Joe Williams.

"His injury is a different type of scenario so he's pain-free and that means he can just crack on regardless," the manager added. "When you've got players who have recurring soft tissue injuries then that's when alarm bells should be ringing and the approach has to be more measured.

"That's not to suggest we don't think that with Matty, he's a very important member of our squad but a lot of it is to do with his ability to either play with discomfort or no pain at all, so he's fine and will be available for selection at the weekend."

Youngster Ryley Towler's comeback from injury was cut short in the week when he came off before half-time against Cardiff in City's U23 victory over their rivals - although the manager admitted it was just a precaution.

"It was just a precaution," he said. "I think I've explained to you before the nature of it it's a back issue which I think for somebody of his age and how much he has grown over the last few years it's very important that we err on the side of caution."

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