Bristol City predicted team vs Leicester: Struber to weigh up Knight risk amid quick turnaround
Bristol Live’s predicted Bristol City team to face Leicester City as Gerhard Struber looks to manage Jason Knight and Cam Pring’s workload
Bristol City boss Gerhard Struber watches on from the touchline(Image: Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
As is the case throughout December, the games come thick and fast for Bristol City at the moment. With the frustration of the weekend’s defeat to Millwall very much fresh in the mind, attention this evening turns to what is expected to be another tough test against Leicester City.
The Foxes’ trip to Ashton Gate comes just a matter of days after perhaps the most irritating day of the Reds’ campaign so far. While City played some of the best football seen under Struber in BS3 against the Lions, they came away empty-handed.
Ultimately, a combination of good defending, a lack of end product, and a controversial decision or two proved to be enough for Alex Neil’s side to claim all three points with a 1-0 win. You don’t need us to tell you what happened afterwards, as it has been rather well-documented in the days since.
Saturday, on the other hand, was a much more positive day for this evening’s opponents, Leicester City. Marti Cifuentes’ side avoided stretching their losing run to three matches as they ran out 3-1 winners over Derby County at Pride Park.
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The three points claimed against the Rams have seen the Foxes move within two points of City in the Championship table. In short, that means that a win for either side tonight could massively change the make-up of England’s second tier.
Thanks in part to the quick turnaround, Struber is expected to have the same group of players to work with this evening as he did against Millwall. Whether or not Jason Knight is able to keep his place in the starting line-up was set to be decided yesterday, while it was hinted that Cam Pring could get a longer run-out against Leicester than he has done so far this term.
With another brief interlude to come between tonight’s fixture and Saturday’s trip to Coventry City, Struber has some important decisions to make. Only he’ll know exactly what the plan is, but here is how we think the Robins will start against Leicester City…
Goalkeeper and defence
In all honesty, Saturday’s defeat to Millwall was likely one of the quietest games Radek Vitek has had between the posts as a Bristol City goalkeeper, outside of a chaotic passage of play moments before the hour mark. Even when it came to the Lions’ opener, it was hard to lay too much blame at the Manchester United loanee’s door.
Twice in quick succession, Vitek saved well from Femi Azeez, and he could do very little about Mihailo Ivanovic’s strike. The 22-year-old is clearly Gerhard Struber’s number one at this moment in time, as evidenced by the fact he has started every Championship game so far this season, and we don’t expect that to have changed heading into this evening’s game.
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Ahead of the Robins’ stopper, we don’t expect Struber to move too far away from the back three that have proven to be his preferred combination since the November international break. Barring any surprises, our bet is that it will once again be Rob Dickie in the middle of the Reds’ backline, and the vice-captain will be flanked on either side by George Tanner and Zak Vyner.
Like Vitek, all three defenders would have been good value for a clean sheet against the Lions, and the combination of Vyner’s passing range and Tanner’s one-on-one ability out of possession has proven to be very effective in recent weeks. That pairing also seems to get the best out of Dickie, on and off the ball.
Assuming our prediction is correct, Haydon Roberts will likely be the man to offer an alternative from the bench, potentially as well as Cam Pring.
Midfield
At this moment in time, it feels like there is only one name that is nailed on to start when it comes to Bristol City’s midfield and wing-backs: Adam Randell. In a position which has been plagued by injuries this term, the former Plymouth Argyle man has been a constant over the course of what has been an impressive first few months as a Robin.
He will likely continue his record of starting every league game so far this season against Leicester, but just who will partner him is harder to predict. If a fully fit Jason Knight was available, we would be confident in backing the City captain to get the nod, but by Gerhard Struber’s own admission, the Ireland international isn’t quite at that point yet.
Bristol City captain Jason Knight is fouled during the Robins’ defeat to Millwall(Image: EFL)
There is a very real chance the 24-year-old will retain his place in the starting line-up this evening, having made his first start since September against Millwall, but we’re going to hedge our bets and suggest that he’ll begin on the bench against the Foxes.
As Struber noted in Monday’s press conference, the turnaround to Saturday’s trip to Coventry is incredibly tight, and the Robins will likely want their skipper fit and firing for that one.
If we’re correct and Knight doesn’t feature from the off, our expectation is that Mark Sykes will return to the more central role he started in against Portsmouth. The winger was excellent in what was a slightly unusual position, and his skill set could be rather helpful in what is expected to be an open game.
That will leave the right wing-back position open for Ross McCrorie to slot back into the starting line-up. The Scotsman impressed off the bench at the weekend and should be able to provide that extra percentage point or two that Struber is looking for from his players on either flank.
On the opposite wing, we think Neto Borges will continue. Yes, Cam Pring is getting closer to being ready and able to start a competitive game, but the evidence shows the Robins won’t risk him unnecessarily. With that in mind, there is no reason to rush him back into the side when Borges is playing well.
Attack and striker
We think that if you were to ask Bristol City supporters who should start in each of the three attacking positions in Gerhard Struber’s side, most fans would be able to agree on two names: Scott Twine and Anis Mehmeti.
The Reds’ attacking midfield pairing didn’t have their best of games against Millwall last weekend – something you could probably say about most in City colours – but they still looked the most likely to make something happen. Although he will have been frustrated with his part in the Lions’ winner, Mehmeti could have very easily walked away with an assist, had Emil Riis’ studs been an inch longer.
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Struber has shown over the course of the campaign that he is not reactionary. While sections of supporters may be eager to see a shift just behind the striker, we expect the Robins boss to stand by Mehmeti and Twine, with Yu Hirakawa likely the alternative on the bench.
The same logic can be applied right at the top end of the pitch. Riis didn’t quite hit his early-season heights against Alex Neil’s side, but he did link up play well and got on the end of City’s biggest chance of the afternoon.
Since declaring himself fully fit after the November international break, the Dane has started all of the Reds’ last four Championship matches. Of course, there is a chance that tonight could be the night that the streak comes to an end, and Sinclair Armstrong returns to the starting line-up, but our gut tells us it will be Riis who leads the line once more.
Like Struber, we won’t completely rule out the possibility of the pair starting together against Leicester, but our prediction is that Armstrong will feature alongside Fally Mayulu and likely Harry Cornick on the bench.
Bristol City predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Radek Vitek; George Tanner, Rob Dickie, Zak Vyner; Ross McCrorie, Adam Randell, Mark Sykes, Neto Borges; Scott Twine, Anis Mehmeti, Emil Riis
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