Liam Manning has issued a clean bill of health for his Bristol City squad ahead of their Severnside derby contest against Cardiff City this weekend and given an update on trio Rob Atkinson, Ross McCrorie and George Earthy.
The Robins head coach will have the same squad to pick from for their 0-0 draw against Sheffield Wednesday in midweek as City prepare for their third game in eight days.
When asked whether his side picked up any injuries after Wednesday’s draw, he said, “No, nothing new. Everyone came through, fortunately everyone is in a good spot.”
Meanwhile, Atkinson’s return from a 20-month injury lay off has been on the cards over recent weeks, with the defender featuring for City’s Under-21s. The centre-back played 90 minutes in the Young Robins’ 5-0 thrashing of Bournemouth U21s on Monday afternoon and is closing in on first-team action.
The 26-year-old last featured for City in February 2023 where he picked up an ACL issue against Sunderland before sustaining a hamstring problem 12-months later. After seeing off the injury, the luckless defender went on to pick up a minor groin injury in pre-season and has ruled him out of the opening eight games so far.
While Sunday’s game may come too soon for the Atkinson, Manning will utilise the international break to enable the best chance of a return for the centre-back.
He added, “For me in terms of where he’s (Rob Atkinson) at, he’s getting better each week when he plays in the U21s physically. He did his first 90 minutes in their last game and then building on that will be paramount for him.
“We’re going to do an internal game during the international break which will be another good opportunity and then for me he’s good to go. He’s been pushing and then it’s a case of the competition being there.”
McCrorie, who sustained a hamstring injury on the eve of the new season, appeared on the bench for the first time this term in midweek after two appearances for City’s U21s. The Scotland International joined George Earthy in the 20-man squad, with the West Ham loanee also recently returning from an ankle problem.
Despite the pair making the substitutes bench against Sheffield Wednesday, Manning revealed he will err on the side of caution over unleashing the duo for what promises to be a feisty battle against rivals Cardiff.
The Robins boss added, “Ross has done two 45s with the Under-21s and George has been training. Whether they’re ready to start but they’re a lot better than what they were two-weeks-ago. It’s one of those where you have to find the right balance of throwing them in and seeing what they do but at the same point not risking them and losing them for the longer term.
“When you go Sunday-Wednesday-Sunday, it can bring different challenges with the program where you’ve got people that have played, people that have come off the bench, people that are on the bench that haven’t been involved, people who haven’t been in the squad.
“You’ve got lots of groups to manage but there is a huge amount of credit to the staff. What they do is a terrific job by giving each player what they need individually so when it comes to Sunday, everyone will be in the best place possible.”