Not many tbh However, watching the footage of the match (because I can !) it seems we have unearthed a secret weapon in Burns. The lad has put on some weight over the last 6 months, and that has given him a good deal of presence which, added to his undoubted pace, makes him a major asset and a threat to any Championship defence. It seems the time has come for Burns of Bristol City. For the rest, a mixture of off-days (Fielding !) and a lack of sharpness generally made Wednesday look good. This was not the same City as last term, which is surprising. Cotterill has a lot of hard work to do on these players to up the anti to Championship standard, but the good news there is - he will do
I make no secret of the fact that I am not a fan of Fielding and never have been. I think he is an accident waiting to happen. In L1 he got away with it and was protected to a degree. There is no hiding in this league. SC needs to rally the lads before all of the feel good factor of last season becomes just a distant memory. Football is all about confidence. Up The City
I'm not too worried about the first game, and I doubt Cotterill is either. For me, it's all about testing the waters, and I think for the first time we've realised just how difficult this season will be for us. We've not spent enough money, our squad isn't deep enough, and we lack quality in certain areas. Finally, the uncertainty around signings has probably spread to the squad, hence the squad playing with little confidence so soon after a dominant season. With that being said, possession was good, and we didn't look out of place. If we can make a few additional signings I reckon survival is definitely possible. I'm hoping that our fans will drop their dreams of hitting the playoffs and will join the rest of us on Planet Earth.
'This was not the same City as last term, which is surprising' Surprising ? Not at all. We're in a different League Reason to be cheerful. I've given Fielding a SatNav.
I'd go as far as to say five games after our final signing for the team to bed in and realise what position we're ultimately in. Kodjia needs more time to adjust, and our other players still need to gel with the squad. If we're not going to be making a marque signing this season then anyone we bring in will need time to blend into their surroundings.
ha ha ! But everyone has an off-day sometimes. Case in point is Cech and his debut for Arsenal yesterday. Surprising yes, because I expected Cotts to up the anti (not just with signings but with the players we have). They looked sluggish and unprepared by our recent standards. The team of last season would have taken the points I would suggest. However, a couple of storming performances and the world will smell a lot nicer
Who's Gilabert and Hunter? If you scroll down they are named in the team but no numbers yet http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/teams/bristol-city
'The team of last season would have taken the points I would suggest' I can't get my head around that logic as we are in a completely different league. Last pre season we were the big fish. This pre season we aint a Minnow but our recruitment has hit a brick wall. Eg - We went for Bentley, got outbid and gave Fielding an extended contract ffs. Cotterill knows (we all know) we're lacking at least 4 players and can't hide his frustrations.
I think we gave West Ham a closer game last season than we did SW on Saturday. The body language wasn't the same. I feel it was a rude awakening, and maybe Cotts has been concentrating on the transfers too much and not on the team. For that I blame whoever stood in the way of business deals at the tail end of last season, whoever that might be. But as they are unlikely to admit as much, it will probably remain a mystery
Whatever the reasons, the vibe and attitude coming from the club as a whole just don't seem the same as last term, or perhaps it was a major reality check as I put in another post. It certainly looked like that for the goals we gave away, especially the second one. Compare our performance and result to those of the other teams who went up with us on the opening day. MK Dons thrashed Rotherham 4-1 away and Preston played very well (I watched it live) against a Boro team that are sure to be up there at the end of the season.
None at all if you are listening to or watching our dismal performance at Luton. Premier League? Never!
Nowhere near most of the championship teams let alone ever thinking about the premiership......I was expecting better but your awful and more than likely go back down. leaking goals like it's going out of fashion, Not ready for the championship in any shape or form and that is down to the manager im afraid.....
Not the manager,the board i do believe. Cotts is not a happy bunny at present,preparation has been poor so far.
