Perception is nine-tenths of the law when it comes to football debate and either that Bristol City performance was one of promise with further positives to build on, or the same old story of inconsistency and various lingering concerns simply won't go away.
A lot of that latter opinion is probably shaped by the result, which was disappointing - albeit in a competition which mustered a crowd barely above 10,000, more than a quarter representing Coventry City - but has a habit of ultimately dictating whether something is good or bad. It’s not the journey, it’s always the destination.
To sit on that fence, the answer probably lies in the middle: City were undoubtedly the better side in the first half, Ben Wilson the busier of the two goalkeepers, as the Robins exerted a degree of control and attacked with real variation and intent, albeit devoid of a killer touch.
But a lot of what transpired in the second half probably confirmed what some already think, and the only way to change hearts and minds is by securing cold, hard results as evidence. And you can understand that viewpoint - people just want to see their team win football matches.
The Robins surrendered momentum, and the second 45 minutes were scrappy and low quality with attacking endeavours largely born out of hope, while the tie was decided by an £8 million striker emerging from the bench and finishing with real quality.
Perhaps that told the story in itself: A Carabao Cup tie, in which both managers made 16 changes between them - with some merit, admittedly, given the stage of the season - inside a sparsely-filled Ashton Gate with both sides looking unsure and erratic at times, was only ever going to be determined by one goal and an individual, or individuals, lifting themselves above the mundane.
Ellis Simms provided that, his first touch taking him away from the otherwise impressive Kal Naismith, after Kasey Palmer’s purposeful run forward - a player who looks vastly different from the frustrating figure who inspired so many adulterous chants during his unfulfilled time in the West Country. Here are the talkings points from BS3…
A performance with two faces
Just as he declared on Saturday, Liam Manning wanted to highlight the positives from this game, although when asked whether Tuesday night had echoes of what happened at the MKM Stadium - periods of control but a lack of end product - he only half agreed.
“We probably had more control and dominance throughout the whole game on Saturday, whereas tonight in the first half I thought we played some really good stuff,” Manning said.
“We did a good job of forcing Coventry on the back foot with the way we pressed, and controlled the ball. I thought we showed real good discipline to move it quickly but with purpose, I thought we got into some great areas and carried a real threat.
“Naturally, I think what we got after half-time was a response. I’m sure Mark spoke to them, made them a bit more aggressive, got them on the front foot, and pressed a bit higher.
“I don’t think we dealt with that well enough in the second half. It became a bit of a scrap, rather than either team having control of the game in the second half.”
As to what those positives, he added: “The first half. We didn’t give up too many chances, lost 1-0 but it wasn’t like they had loads of clear-cut chances. I thought we defended really well. And then you look at who they bring on to change the game and the cost involved with that, is naturally what you get. One really good chance, one finish.
“I’m sure that will come with us. I’m confident in that, in terms of the way that we’re playing, the areas we’re getting into, the chances that we are creating, and the competition we’ve got to do that. Similar to what I said at the weekend about people stepping up and taking responsibility, we’ll keep working at that.
“It was great to have Naisy back, having not started for a long while. I thought Fally was a handful throughout, quite liked his and Nahki’s relationship in the first half. I liked the way they linked up, and I quite liked the attacking element that we had to that.
“Knighty was excellent. So lots of positives despite not getting the result that we want.”
All of which it’s hard to argue, however pessimistic and whatever foreboding tone you wish to adopt on social media, forums, Whatsapp or at work to whoever is willing to listen. I suspect the former three platforms are far coarser than the latter.
This was a much-changed line-up, probably slightly more than what was anticipated, with George Tanner, Zak Vyner, Jason Knight (who played only 45 minutes; don’t worry, there’s no injury) and Mark Sykes the only remaining members from the XI which took to the field on Humberside.
That meant Max O’Leary’s 82-game stand as City No1 was broken, with Stefan Bajic standing between the posts for the first time in 21 months. Prior to the match, Manning had praised the Frenchman’s “professionalism and attitude” in how he’s patiently waited for his chance.
It is a mark of City’s depth (at this stage of the season, anyway) that seven alterations could be made and it still was a strong team, with an imposing looking bench of senior figures, not one loaded with untested academy talent.
The same was also true of the opposition, with Mark Robins making nine selection switches. That may have been in reaction to their 1-0 defeat to Stoke City but you’d imagine he followed a similar line of thought to Manning in a need to give as many individuals who can be considered first-team players minutes as is possible to get a foundational level of fitness in them now.
To clap those happy hands with glee, despite the changes, after a slightly shaky start when Haji Wright’s pace threatened to cause Tanner all manner of problems, but once again, as he tends to do, the right-back soon shut the American down, City started forming some nice patterns.
Naismith’s distribution from deep (we’ll talk more about him in a minute) enabled Knight to take possession, quickly turn and move forward and while Taylor Gardner-Hickman was a little backwards and square at the start, he grew into the half with how he progressed the ball.
Sam Bell, albeit with a few erratic touches, showed purpose to attack Joel Latibeaudiere, while Mark Sykes had a good tussle with Jay Dasilva. The balance of the chances were unquestionably in City’s favour with Ben Wilson making saves from Bell and Mayulu (twice) - although all three efforts were a little too central to the goalkeeper - plus a double stop to deny Wells and then Bell, after some excellent build-up with Haydon Roberts producing a truly fantastic run through midfield, the pick of the bunch.
Sykes also saw a deflected effort whistle just wide of the post, to the point at least two players started to celebrate as they thought it was going in, Tanner placed a half-volley a yard or two the wrong side of the upright and Naismith flicked a late chance from a corner over the bar.
The opportunities had been there, but City’s finishing was increasingly appearing wasteful. Still, plenty to build on and work with in the second half.
Except, they never really did. And all City did well in the first 45 minutes, they were unable to replicate thereafter. The midfield, shorn of Knight, who was replaced by Joe Williams, lost structure and authority. It all became a bit loose, rushed and lacking fluidity. Consequently the service into Wells and Mayulu, which had been largely consistent before, dried up, and they increasingly had to fight just to get into the game.
Coventry weren’t playing particularly well either, but then their trump cards emerged off the bench with Simms, Tatsuhiro Sakamoto, Jack Rudoni, Milan van Ewijk and Jamie Allen all introduced and you kind of thought one of them would eventually do something of influence, which proved to be the case and in pretty quick time.
Manning made his own changes, with Josh Stokes earning a debut, and there was a late flurry from the hosts. Wilson saved from Anis Mehmeti, his parry agonisingly close to Sinclair Armstrong who would have had a tap-in and then Stokes got behind the defence to lift a ball over the goalkeeper, but whether it was a cross or a shot was irrelevant because while it bounced invitingly inside the vacant six-yard box, nobody was there to finish.
Throughout the team, there were cases to be made for moments of real promise, but also anguish. You could edit a highlights package for each player very easily, depicting a coherent argument one way or the other as to whether they were good or bad, if you so wished.
More shots (15 again, six of which were on target), more balls into the final third (66-38), more corners (9-8), a pretty lean xG of 0.66 but still more than double Coventry’s, more possession (51.9-48.1) against a side that mostly looks to keep the ball, and more saves recorded by Wilson than Bajic (6-3), but it ended in defeat.
This all very much remains a work in progress, and there are more than a few missing elements, but it’s one you have to think is trending in the right direction. Unless you don’t perceive it that way, of course.
Two’s a company
Outside of a home game against Leeds United, when he started Tommy Conway and Wells together, and it didn’t really work, and a few flashes late in a small number of matches towards the end, Manning has largely been wedded to the concept of one striker. Much to many people’s frustration, certain the cure to City’s attacking ills is the simple solution of having another forward on the pitch.
In fairness, even though the Robins drew a blank on Tuesday night, the case for such received some pretty compelling evidence in how Wells and Mayulu played together, particularly in the first half.
Not only that, we witnessed the revival of a 4-4-2, albeit not a traditional one with the midfield quartet a little staggered; more a 4-2-2-2 to be specific. But, still, it would have undoubtedly satisfied many.
Although, philosophically and in the wider context of the modern game, Manning, like man, seems more of a "one striker man", his reasons for such last season were also a result of the resources at hand: he had two good Championship strikers in Wells and Conway, who had formed an encouraging relationship in the previous season under Nigel Pearson, but there was a feeling and suspicion that they were too similar stylistically to truly work as a partnership; both ultimately making similar runs and wanting to do the same thing.
He now has three strikers of very different profiles in Wells, Mayulu and Armstrong and in the 180 minutes we’re witnessed so far, it seems he’s very much open to the concept of using two frontmen at the same time; for 18 minutes at Hull, Wells and Mayulu were on the field together and 69 here they worked in tandem.
The flipside to that, and it’s the smallest of sample sizes, is that Armstrong is being initially cast as the lone striker, although when asked about this, Manning admitted he did consider the 22-year-old as a potential partner for someone: “Possibly yeah, I wouldn’t rule anything out. Depends on the game, how you get success and what you’re looking for. Both have played wide as well, that’s another thing that excites me, we have different options.”
This could all change, of course, if George Earthy’s loan arrival is followed by Scott Twine (or another No10) and Manning suddenly has more playmakers to work with, which may lead us back to the 3-4-2-1.
But for now, let us celebrate what could become something special as the pair showed real promise, not just as individuals but together in unison. Wells was operating a little deeper and often his runs drew Coventry players marginally out of position, allowing passes to be whipped through into Mayulu’s feet with the Bermudian then spinning into space to receive the second pass.
Each one looked to be searching for the other whenever they got on the ball or those on the move then made a run to try and open up further space. From a selfish point of view, both showed a willingness to take shots on when the moment required.
Wells drilled a shot wide of the near post after being assisted by his partner, tried to place an effort into the far corner but it just lacked the requisite power to beat Wilson, and Mayulu’s standout moment was when he took a pass from Knight, took Liam Kitching one way, then the other and back again, before firing at Wilson.
At the time, I wrote City lacked conviction but, on reflection, that’s inaccurate. In terms of their front two, they attacked with confidence, it just wasn’t quite clinical enough.
There were some rough edges to smooth out, one particularly smart dummy by Wells on halfway from Tanner’s quick pass would have given Mayulu a step on his marker but wasn’t quite anticipated by the Frenchman.
The drop-off in the second half, as a symptom of the lack of control in midfield, also displayed for all their talents, they still require service. “I have to say on Saturday, and again tonight you can see the relationships are forming quite quickly which is the bit that excites me,” Manning said. “Fally showed his quality with the way you can play into him, some of the balls Naismith smashed into him.
“And then with Nahki moving off him and the little combinations that they look for and the areas they got into. I like the fact they’re looking to combine.”
It will be interesting to see what Saturday brings.
The class of Kal
In what was a tough watch for much of the second half, Naismith - shortly before Simms’ winner - found himself last man and under a high looping ball out of defence. With a Sky Blue forward in his vicinity the obvious decision was to get under it and send a powerful header back upfield.
Instead, with zero cover behind him to mitigate a dodgy touch, he elegantly brought it down with his instep, drew the opposition player in, pivoted and then flicked a pass out wide.
It was a piece of technical artistry that, yes, is more apparent among defenders in the modern game - Zak Vyner delivered some wonderfully smooth touches when under pressure, the ball seemingly sticking to his boot like glue - but was still a joy to watch.
In the first half, he had frequently been first or second receiver and targeted for Coventry’s press but his calmness in possession was remarkable. To the point he looks like he leaves it too late in swerving his way past a man, but in using his stature and body shape, just pirouettes into space and then City can progress forward.
Rob Dickie, the man he replaced in the side, consistently gets the Robins up the pitch but usually with the ball at his feet as he drives into midfield. Naismith produces extra yardage with his long delivery; sometimes in the air, looking for Bell beyond or wide of the defence but, more often than not, with the confidence to really fire a pass into the feet of Mayulu and Wells.
To return to the previous section, having that source and then the intended recipient, whose able to bring the ball in, before setting and laying off to a midfielder or winger, creates numerous issues for the opposition.
What’s more with Naismith is that we’ve seen so little of this in Manning’s system because he’s been injured since November 29, which was only the head coach’s third game in charge. We’d almost forgotten about what he can do.
In his first season, throughout the unforced errors which troubled the start of time at City, his delivery into Andi Weimann in the No10 spot was a real weapon.
There’s no doubt this is a big season for Naismith. He’s in the final year of his contract and his injury issues have meant City haven’t received a suitable return on the wages invested in him: 37 starts over his first two campaigns is annoying for everyone, him more than anyone.
City are blessed with options at centre-back, more than anywhere else on the pitch, pven more so if they can bring Luke McNally in, but Naismith adds something a bit different, unorthodox even and provides an extra edge and dimension to how the team attacks.
The question, however, remains: exactly how he fits into the side in a back four. Yes, it’s a squad game and the concept of “starters” is a flexible one over a 46-game league season. You need third, fourth and often fifth-choice options, all of suitable ability to step in and maintain performance.
But Manning’s favoured pairing remains Vyner and Dickie and you’d expect them to take to the field against Millwall. Naismith is, of course, a natural left-sided option but, in a two, his occasional defensive lapses are that little bit more exposed; as witnessed by Simms’ winner in the fact he wasn’t quite tight enough to react to the striker’s fine touch, which took him away from the City backline.
Where Naismith looks absolutely perfect, as is also the case with Roberts who once again showed some sublime stuff in possession, more so when in centralised areas then out wide, is on the left of a three-man defence.
As mentioned, that could come to pass if City are successful in the market and Earthy is followed by Twine, which surely is too much for Manning to resist returning to a 3-4-2-1, enabling Vyner, Dickie and Naismith to all start.
What’s more, the Scot is needed in a spiritual sense as well in this largely young dressing room room. A gregarious character around the HPC, when injured he’s probably not been able to have that level of influence, but a fit Naismith brings so much on the pitch and in the dressing room.
We can only hope it continues, in whatever form.
An obvious conclusion
Earthy watched on from the poshest seats of the Lansdown Stand, with the hope/expectation that he’ll be a City player in time for the weekend (and it’ll be interesting which squad number he takes with 10 and 15 available as obvious picks; if it’s the former, where does it say about the identity of the next possible man in?).
The 19-year-old is a huge talent and West Ham have chosen his loan destination very carefully, with those behind the scenes at the London Stadium fully aware of what Manning can provide as a coach, coupled with the positional need in the squad and the fact he should win sufficient match time.
That’s dependent on how he performs and adapts to life in the Championship, with the indication being that he needs a bit of the old rough and tumble to truly shape him physically and sharpen his decision-making in real time on the field.
As Simms, and to a similar extent Palmer, proved in tight matches such as this, one moment of class and inspiration is all that is needed and City so far have looked a well-drilled and organised unit, with the process evident, but without such a spark of inspiration.
For all the areas they got into, and the pressure on the Coventry defence, at least from a distance, you never felt wholly confident they were going to find a way past Wilson whose saves were numerous but also ones you’d expect a keeper at his level to make.
City also produced nine corners, one more than they earned on Saturday, but outside of Naismith’s lashed volley towards the end of the first-half, the Tanner half-volley from distance on the second phase and Vyner sending an attempt over late on which he scarcely knew about, did the Sky Blues look uncomfortable in repelling each set-piece.
City have defenders who can play, midfielders capable of driving forward, wingers who can beat a man and at pace and a forward line with variation, possessing speed, physicality and clever touches on the fringes, they very clearly now need a conductor, or perhaps two of them.
It is asking a lot for that answer to be a teenager with four senior appearances to his name, plus for all West Ham’s requirements it will be ambitious to anticipate he’ll be consistent enough in his performance to be playing every game.
We all know what and who this is leading back to, but what Earthy’s imminent arrival does is give the Robins a degree of breathing space to try and finish what they’ve been trying to do for at least three months.
It was also interesting to hear Manning constantly reference Coventry’s spending in lieu of selling players. He said before the match and after. He’s too polite to play deliberate political games but you wonder if there is frustration that the reason Scott Twine isn’t a City player comes down to the matter of principle over an amount of money that, he believes, can be the difference between success and failure.
That all being said, while the transfer market being open allows us to live in a world of “missing pieces of the puzzle” and whatnot, there are plenty of players already in the building still capable of winning football matches and delivering decisive moments in the penalty area.
Manning has spoken of the increased competition in the squad and the need for individuals to start taking responsibility. While two games is not a long enough period of time to start jumping to conclusions, Saturday represents an ideal moment for such a call to be answered and for those in the here and now to provide that additional class which, as it stands, only exists in the abstract.
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