When the final whistle went in Cardiff 19 days ago, I’ll admit I got a bit carried away. Strolling back to the train station with thousands of excitable City fans, it was hard not to be. Dan Bentley cheekily asking the camera “is that three in a row at Cardiff?” at full-time summed up the result’s surrounding euphoria.
Following City away from home has been brilliant over the last few years. Since the start of the 2018/19 season we’ve chalked up 30 away wins in the league, more than any other team. Amongst the ardent away trippers there’s always an overwhelming sense of positivity. A feeling that we’re always in with a shout. No matter the opposition. No matter the odds.
Compare that to the feeling at Ashton Gate, it is completely different. A subtle sense of nervousness crept in whilst we racked up those 30 wins. If we’re always in the game when playing away, we’re never safe at Ashton Gate. This team will often get three points on the road when you least expect it. How many times have we failed to beat the teams “you’ve simply got to beat at home”.
Change in Expectations?
If the Cardiff win got me too excited, two home performances since have certainly calmed me down. Were it not for a combination of luck and woeful finishing on the part of Luton, we would’ve been at least two down at half-time. I don’t wish to offend the people of Luton or the fans of its football club. We should be beating teams like them, we should certainly not be being outperformed by them. They had more shots, more corners, more possession and certainly the better chances. They deserved to win, despite scoring in the last minute I wonder if they’ll be upset with a point.
Luton substitute Danny Hylton extended Bristol City's home jinx with a stoppage-time equaliser in a 1-1 Championship draw
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) September 15, 2021
I’ve thought about a few changes since then that could help with our current situation, one seems fairly obvious. My expectations. The hype around Nigel Pearson’s appointment is slowly dying down. He’s been here for a little while, it’s understandable. I’m wondering if I need to come to terms with what this season might look like. That’s the thing about football ain’t it, not every team is able to have a thrilling campaign. Someone has to be average. Maybe that’s us this time around.
Giving a fair amount of youngsters a chance and playing exciting football would go a long way to make the season more bearable. We’ll see how much of those two things we see between now and game 46. When you consider how woeful we were in 19/20, suddenly a mid-table season doesn’t seem so bad. It would probably be a reasonable achievement for Nigel Pearson, all things considered. This is certainly a rebuild, it’ll take time.
Change of Personnel
I’m happy to lower my expectations, I’m not a particularly demanding City fan. One thing I would request though is to see changes for our game this weekend. I am a fan of Nathan Baker, he brings much needed toughness and bravery to our team. He’s a threat from set pieces and wears his heart on his sleeve.
However he is not a left back. All the talk has been about Vyner looking uncomfortable at right back, I’m surprised the conversation hasn’t been twice as loud about Baker. When Dasilva was on the other side, Vyner could be the defensive full back. Something he’s much more capable of doing. With Baker at left back, suddenly Vyner is expected to be the attacking outlet from defence. If there’s one switch to be made, it’s at left back in my mind. If it’s Pring or Dasilva there, I don’t really mind.
I agree that Vyner wasn’t great on Wednesday. Please bear in mind he was playing behind someone who gave a performance worthy of being subbed off in the first half. At least in Pearson’s mind that is. After Semenyo’s cameo against Cardiff it’s a shame he’s only had 20 minutes since. QPR could be the perfect game for a player like him. I’d love to see them two as our right hand side.
Change in Formation
If we’re not changing personnel then how about a change in formation? I would love to see Pring or Dasilva get some time as a wing back for us. Atkinson, Baker and Kalas would make a formidable back line. Pearson admitted that Alex Scott wasn’t playing in his ideal position. Maybe it’s time to see him centrally again. Will Nahki Wells get a recall against his old club? He didn’t set the world alight with his 60 minutes on Wednesday.
It’ll be interesting to see what sorta changes are made for tomorrow’s game. QPR have scored and conceded a fair amount of goals this season. It’ll be an open game, maybe the perfect opportunity for a few changes. I’m gonna change my expectations for this campaign, we’ll go from there.