Bristol City got their 2022/23 travels underway with a 1-0 win away to League One Plymouth Argyle, thanks to a late Nahki Wells’ goal in front of 720 travelling fans.
Due to the renovation of the playing surface at Ashton Gate, the City faithful have been unable to watch their side live in pre-season action before their Saturday trip south, where they got their first looks at Mark Sykes and Kane Wilson.
It was a slightly weaker side at Home Park than the one which faced Portsmouth at the Robins’ High Performance Centre on Tuesday, with Han-Noah Massengo and Andy King given their first starts of the season.
Steve Schumacher’s Argyle side gave City their hardest game of pre-season so far and could’ve had quite easily taken the lead in the first half with a number of wasted chances in an incredibly open contest.
But a third clean sheet in as many games will have left the travelling fans with a positive feeling on their way back up M5, that maybe this could be the start of an exciting season. Or maybe not as it is only pre-season after all.
That being said there is a buzz around Bristol City at the moment and here are the moments missed from Home Park.
Nigel Pearson watch
Throughout a huge amount of last season, there were few figures as divisive as Nigel Pearson where it felt as though a week wouldn’t go by without certain sections of fans either offering him a lifetime contract or wanting him sacked on the spot.
But the reception that he got as he entered the field during the warm-ups was a welcome one, as every one of the 720 supporters who had already made it to their seats applauded the City boss.
As usual he cast a watching eye over the warm-ups, spending a good amount of time in conversation with Dan Bentley about what appeared to be his distribution, before stopping for a conversation with a fan on his way back to the changing rooms.
As he has done so far at the HPC, Pearson opted to watch from the stands only a few seats down from CEO Richard Gould, with Curtis Fleming and Jason Euell the voices giving instructions from the side lines during the action.
But that didn’t mean Pearson’s influence had been limited as he was deep in conversation with both Mark Sykes and Kane Wilson before the second half got underway, perhaps explaining what he wanted from his new signings during their (out of position) cameo appearances.
There was immediate reflection from Fleming as well. As we made our way to the touchline to speak with Euell after the game, the Robins’ assistant coach was reflecting with Andy King over the midfielder’s display and how he and City could improve.
Han-Noah is back and feeling the love
It’s been 70 days since the Cider Army last saw their side in live action, a 2-0 defeat to Huddersfield Town looked as though it may be a farewell for South Bristol’s favourite Frenchman.
But as the fans returned, so did Han-Noah Massengo to the Robins’ starting XI and it didn’t take long for a rendition of “he drinks the vodka, he drinks the cider…” to echo from the travelling supporters.
He was his usual energetic and exciting self, there were step-overs a plenty, flashy back-heels and even an impressive nutmeg as he reminded everyone watching what he was capable of. As he left the field after the final whistle the fans showed their appreciation, ending up with him donning a flower lei and French flag.
After the fans had dispersed, he could be seen with his video and film camera once again catching the moments after his teams’ success with a smile across his face, he certainly doesn’t look like a man desperate to leave Ashton Gate.
Weimann is still an officials’ nightmare
The goals of last season may not have started flowing for Andi Weimann so far this pre-season, but he will certainly still be leaving a mark on matches in the mind of the officials City have had so far.
It’s safe to say he didn’t agree with all of the decisions made at Home Park on Saturday and when he felt his shirt was pulled in the first half rather than demonstrating his irritation with the referee, his target was the fourth official who was given an earful by the Austrian.
He may be yet to score so far this pre-season but a majority of the away end at Home Park thought he had volleyed home from a Jay Dasilva cross, but the cheers were short lived as the City faithful realised he’d only been able to find the side netting.
It will be interesting to see where Weimann operates across the last three pre-season matches having started in his typical role behind a front pair against Argyle, but as one of the front two on Tuesday against Portsmouth. Euell and Fleming have been keen to state that nothing is decided for the season opener yet, so we’ll have to wait and see.
Martin has a frustrating afternoon
He may not have featured against Portsmouth on Tuesday, but Chris Martin has had a busy week off of the field after his partner gave birth to a baby boy, Jaxon, late on Monday evening.
Fleming revealed the forward had trained early on Tuesday morning so he wouldn’t miss too much action, but the former Derby frontman looked slightly frustrated and rusty after his limited involvement.
According to his teammates Martin is partial to a moan and that was shown throughout the 90 minutes in Devon. In the first half he kicked the ball away as the home-side had an unthreatening free-kick inside their own half as well as hitting his own head having headed over from Andy King’s corner.
The second half brought much of the same for City’s number nine, after Andreas Weimann opted to try to pick out Jay Dasilva at the far post, he went sliding into the woodwork and the back of the net before giving a disappointed look to his strike partner.
Sykes and Bell given deserved credit
It took plenty of time for the Robins to break the deadlock, after some intricate footwork and a well-placed strike from Nahki Wells beat Michael Cooper in the Pilgrim’s net, but praise had to be given to the work of Sam Bell and Mark Sykes in the build-up.
Sykes had pressed well to win back possession on the edge of the home sides’ box, before picking out Bell who’s first time ball reached Wells. After firstly celebrating with the scorer, the rest of the City players headed straight to Sykes and Bell to commend their creative work.
Pearson and his team always view versatility as a must have and both Bell and Sykes demonstrated this, with Bell deployed in the “Weimann” number 10 role and the former Oxford attacker slotting in at right wing-back.
Although the natural competition for the space on the right will be between Kane Wilson and George Tanner, competition in attacking midfield is fierce so we may see Sykes force his way into the wing-back discussion in a way similar to the route taken by Alex Scott last season.
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