Bristol City v AFC Bournemouth

billythekid

billythekid

UTC Legend
First Visit To Ashton Gate Since 2006

Our team got back to winning ways on Saturday against a Watford side who had won their last four games. A solitary goal from Arnaut Danjuma was enough to win the game with only four shots on target, three from the Cherries. The pleasing thing to watch was our team actually looking like a team and worked for each other. AFCB now need to continue that on in their next game which is away and yet again we are playing a team with another new manager appointed this year.

Our opponents are Bristol City (the Robins) at Ashton Gate on Wednesday night 7.45 pm. Their new manager appointed on 22nd February is the experienced Nigel Pearson, initially in charge until the end of the season. He replaces Dean Holden who was originally assistant manager to Lee Johnson who was sacked last July. Their results at Ashton Gate since the game at Dean Court under Holden, Won 5, Drew 1, Lost 6. Away, Won 3, Drew 0, Lost 8.

Bristol City had their second away win in a row and both by 1-3 score lines under the watch of Pearson, the first win was at Middlesbrough. Pearson only took hold of his first game in charge for the Swansea game last Saturday. The score didn’t tell the full story in a game dominated by Swansea City with 70% possession and 21 shots and 8 on target against Bristol City’s 9 shots and 4 on target. In the first half it was 13 shots to 0 and 0-0 at half-time. Pearson had started with a 5-3-2 formation but changed in the second period to a 4-5-1. The Swans scored first but the Robins equalised and two goal keeping errors by the Swansea City keeper were punished by Bristol City.

The last time the Cherries visited Ashton Gate was in League 1 in December 2006. In the Bristol City team that day in midfield was Lee Johnson, who was the Bristol City manager from February 2016 until July 2020. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, scorers for AFCB were Brett Pitman, who four years later joined Bristol City before coming back to AFCB again and the other scorer was Marcus Browning who was born in Bristol and started his career with the blue side of the City, at Rovers.

Our record at Ashton gate is not the best over the years.

In our league matches away at Bristol City, AFCB have W 4, D 8, L 25.
All competitions, AFCB have W 27, D 24, L 37.

Bristol C Team News
They have had a number of players out injured, they include Chris Martin, hamstring, Jamie Paterson, groin, Henri Lansbury, achilles and Joe Williams, hamstring which needs surgery.

Bristol C Player To Watch
Nikki Wells, joint leading scorer with 8 goals and has scored in their last two games and has 3 assists to his name.

AFCB Team News
Jack Stacey and David Brooks will probably miss this game. Now we have Sam Surridge with an injury to his big toe and he is to have an x-ray on it. According to report in the Echo he couldn’t get a boot on. Jack Wilshere starts a one game suspension after picking up two yellow cards against Watford.

AFCB Player To Watch
Ben Pearson was given MOM by Sky and was really dominant in our midfield, but towards the end of the game he suffered with cramp. If he plays, he again could be important for us. We now have our leading scorer back in Dominic Solanke and hopefully both Junior Stanislas and Arnaut Danjuma also start again against the Robins.
 
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Was really looking forward to this one when the fixtures came out, gutted to not be going. Used to enjoy the trips to Ashton Gate, even if we used to lose most on most occasions! 2-3000 behind the goal would have been great.
 
Unfortunately we are facing them in the middle of a resurge in their form, and under the guidance of Nigel Pearson who I really wanted us to employ as someone who knows his way around this league and has proven success.

However it will be a true test of whether we have come through our little sticky patch and I am optimistic of a good showing given the confidence that beating Watford should have instilled in our belief that we are worthy of a top six finish at least.

I would hope that Woodgate goes with the same starting XI as last Saturday which was solid in that test of character.

If Solanke came through unscathed then it will be a big boost (and he is due a goal!)

Hopefully Lewis Cook, Jefferson Lerma and Ben Pearson will form the solid midfield that we will require, with Junior Stanislas wide right and Arnaut Danjuma wide left..

I would quite like to continue with the moving the ball quicker from back to front tactic we used v Watford.

Bristol City's last two wins have been very much them scoring on the break having conceded most of the possession, it will interesting if we can use what might be the lions share of the ball to good effect....?
 
If our team can take advantage where Swansea didn’t in the first half, no reason after Saturday why we can’t win this one.

They have a long injury list.
 
james_AFCB said:
Was really looking forward to this one when the fixtures came out, gutted to not be going. Used to enjoy the trips to Ashton Gate, even if we used to lose most on most occasions! 2-3000 behind the goal would have been great.
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The ground has changed a lot since we were last there.

I nearly got hypothermia the last time that i was there but the away fans have been moved to a far newer stand (not that it makes any difference this season!).
 
Garbo said:
I would quite like to continue with the moving the ball quicker from back to front tactic we used v Watford.
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I noticed in Danjuma's interview he mentioned that the tactic V Watford was to get the ball long and play the game in their half... Something we struggled with for a large part of the game on Saturday due it just coming straight back at us, and something that frustrated me a little. Not really used to seeing us just pump balls long all the time, although it has featured with us more and more this year...

Whilst I see the merits of doing this either from time to time as a tactic, or time to time during a game... It's not something I particularly want to see us do on a regular basis, yet I fear I might have different thoughts to Woodgate on this...

Solanke is good with the ball at his feet and we've more than enough talent in the squad to get the ball up field to him quickly without hoofing it from the FBs every time...

Like I said... mixing it up is ok, but if this is how Woodgate wants to play on a regular basis, it's not for me...

If we can I'd stick with the same starting XI and be tempted to try Anthony at some stage for either Stan or Danjuma... if things aren't working... Or even on for Dom if he's tiring, moving one of the other two as the front man...
 
james_AFCB said:
Was really looking forward to this one when the fixtures came out, gutted to not be going. Used to enjoy the trips to Ashton Gate, even if we used to lose most on most occasions! 2-3000 behind the goal would have been great.
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I remember seeing Claus Jorgenson score a belter of a free kick here to send us all loopy tunes one cold Tues/Weds night...

For some reason Ashton Gate also always reminds me of our yellow, Yellow Coaches away kit...
 
SteveJonesLegend said:
I remember seeing Claus Jorgenson score a belter of a free kick here to send us all loopy tunes one cold Tues/Weds night...

For some reason Ashton Gate also always reminds me of our yellow, Yellow Coaches away kit...
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was there I think?...sure that was the night that Neil Moss played out of his skin for us??
 
Keep the the other side guessing with the odd long ball straight down the pitch and hopefully our forwards can latch onto it.

Our pattern of play from the back will have been noted by the opposition and can easily be telegraphed by the other sides players and we have been punished by it.

Woodgate said they would stick to the same style of play, not sure if this was just bluffing the opposition, but it worked Saturday against another side who like to play football. But it’s horses for courses so a bit adaptability may be needed during the course of a game.

Pearson did that at Swansea, he changed formation second half and it paid off.
 
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...not necessarily looking for the hoof ball...but just some increased moving the ball from the back forwards.......instead of sideways and back.

I watch the best teams at doing this like Man City,Chelsea,Spurs and Liverpool (although not so much this season!)...and one or two passes along the back and then into the middle of the pitch where the midfielder looks to attack and not just take too many touches and play it back..

Now I am not saying that we have that amount of quality in our defenders t be able to do that, so we need to mix it up a bit. I do think teams have sussed us out and press our defenders into mistakes and rushed clearances.
 
Garbo said:
Unfortunately we are facing them in the middle of a resurge in their form, and under the guidance of Nigel Pearson who I really wanted us to employ as someone who knows his way around this league and has proven success.

However it will be a true test of whether we have come through our little sticky patch and I am optimistic of a good showing given the confidence that beating Watford should have instilled in our belief that we are worthy of a top six finish at least.

I would hope that Woodgate goes with the same starting XI as last Saturday which was solid in that test of character.

If Solanke came through unscathed then it will be a big boost (and he is due a goal!)

Hopefully Lewis Cook, Jefferson Lerma and Ben Pearson will form the solid midfield that we will require, with Junior Stanislas wide right and Arnaut Danjuma wide left..

I would quite like to continue with the moving the ball quicker from back to front tactic we used v Watford.

Bristol City's last two wins have been very much them scoring on the break having conceded most of the possession, it will interesting if we can use what might be the lions share of the ball to good effect....?
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I hope he starts the same team as well, even Kelly played well, will be interesting to see if he can keep it up! If you look back at our 14/15 season, when we went up to the Premier league and even the team that got us up in 87 into the championship, we never changed those teams much.
 
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Waz afcb said:
Nah that was a later season, around 2005. Gaz O’Connor scored a double. What a team that was.
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Bristol barely got out their own half that night. Believe it was in the middle of a 5 or 6 game winning run away from home, often at promotion rivals. Just a shame we kept losing all the home games!
 
Garbo said:
...not necessarily looking for the hoof ball...but just some increased moving the ball from the back forwards.......instead of sideways and back.

I watch the best teams at doing this like Man City,Chelsea,Spurs and Liverpool (although not so much this season!)...and one or two passes along the back and then into the middle of the pitch where the midfielder looks to attack and not just take too many touches and play it back..

Now I am not saying that we have that amount of quality in our defenders t be able to do that, so we need to mix it up a bit. I do think teams have sussed us out and press our defenders into mistakes and rushed clearances.
Click to expand...

yes, agreed esp if opposition adopting a high press. As long as done intelligently - as we did in beating Barnsley 4-0. Keeps game flowing rather than back and square to no effect
 
james_AFCB said:
Bristol barely got out their own half that night. Believe it was in the middle of a 5 or 6 game winning run away from home, often at promotion rivals. Just a shame we kept losing all the home games!
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That 2004/05 team should have made the playoffs at the very least - we played some quality stuff at times yet we were just too inconsistent and soft to push for promotion....
Losing all those home games did for us and an insipid 2-2 draw v Hartlepool to end our hopes .... then the team broke up and we dropped away next couple of seasons ....
 
Garbo said:
was there I think?...sure that was the night that Neil Moss played out of his skin for us??
Click to expand...

The Neil Moss game was in the FA Cup, we won 1-0. Our goal was scored down the other end and it was hard to see as it was a bit foggy.

Seem to remember 3 of our team at the time who were either injured or not in the squad, sitting with us in the away end and joining in with all the chants! Dave Town, Marcus Oldbury and Matt Holland I think, but it was a long time ago, so I might be wrong.
 
The wife and I had to walk back up the road to the Sainsbury's car park after that one amongst the City fans, we had to manufacture a few oohs and aars in agreement to how did we lose to that pile of crap, oh happy days.
 
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