There are certain games that when all is said and done at the end of the season, Bristol City and Liam Manning will look back on as standout moments. There will be some the Reds look to as times when they perhaps could have done more and there will be others that stick in the mind as occasions when a genuine statement was made.
Friday night’s win over Norwich City will certainly be in that latter pile. In their final game before the March international break, City stretched their unbeaten run to seven matches, pushed a rival further away from the play-offs and climbed into the top-six themselves. Yes, that final point may not still be true by the time you read this, but at the time of writing, the Robins are sitting fifth in the Championship with the rest of the division yet to play.
Of course, Manning’s side didn’t make it easy despite their best efforts in the opening 45 minutes. While the Canaries posed a constant threat on the break and had chances of their own in the first half, it was the home side who headed back down the tunnel two goals to the good following smart finishes from both Mark Sykes and Nahki Wells. Time after time, a pass from one of Max Bird, Jason Knight or Joe Williams would set the frontline and wing-backs on their way and on this occasion, City made their dominance count.
Norwich may have fallen away slightly in the race for the play-offs, but Johannes Hoff Thorup still has some excellent footballers at his disposal. Having come closer and closer to Max O’Leary’s goal over the course of the second half, the away side threatened a comeback when Borja Sainz finished smartly with his 17th goal of the campaign.
What followed was an all-too-familiar final 10 minutes or so at Ashton Gate. The Canaries were up and knocking on the door in search of a late leveller. This time though, things were different. The home support rallied, as did Manning’s side and having survived one late scare when Marcelino Nunez’s free-kick just drifted wide of the post, they got over the line with all three points in the bag.
Not for the first time on home soil this season, the Robins stood up to be counted when it mattered and can now enjoy an international break knowing they’ve done their bit in the play-off race. Before we prepare for two weeks without any City action, here are the main talking points from the Reds’ 2-1 win over Norwich City…
Ruthless edge
As was the case at Bramall Lane in midweek, the first half of Bristol City’s win over Norwich City on Friday night was a brilliant watch as both teams tried to play attacking, front-foot football that would have had both sets of fans and most neutrals engaged.
The only real frustration for the Robins who made the trip to the Steel City on Tuesday evening was that while their point against Chris Wilder’s side was impressive, they could have perhaps secured all three had they been more clinical in the final third. That feeling was echoed by Chris Hogg in his post-match press conference that night.
“It’s another moment where we’ve got to be a little bit more ruthless for the group to get to where we want to get to,” the assistant head coach said. “Those chances and multiple other chances in games lately and not just today, we’ve got to do a better job at putting them in the back of the net.”
In the opening 45 minutes against the Canaries, City answered Hogg’s call for a ruthless edge and made their dominance count. Mark Sykes’ opener was a thing of beauty as he found the net with what was only really a half chance. The Ireland international chopped in from the right flank, before curling a beautiful left-footed effort into the far corner that left George Long with no chance of saving.
Nahki Wells’ eighth of the season was similarly clinical. The Bermudian international did brilliantly to turn on the ball as he received Joe Williams’ pass, before slotting a low right-footed effort into the bottom corner. Combined, the two goals possessed an xG of just 0.16. For comparison, the header Sinclair Armstrong saw saved against the Blades was worth 0.49 xG.
Of course, the Robins could have still done more and Wells shouldn’t have given Long a chance to save his right-footed shot when he followed in Max Bird’s effort in the first half. Had the 34-year-old converted then, the game would have been done and dusted before the half-time whistle.
However, there was a sense of purpose around everything that Liam Manning’s side did against Norwich. Despite having just 45 per cent possession and producing a total xG of 1.03 compared to the Canaries’ 2.66, they looked the better outfit for large spells of the game.
As I’m sure many of you are saying while reading this, all that counts come the full-time whistle is the score and the Reds made sure they were on the right end of that by taking their chances when they came.
O’Leary steps up
Friday night’s win over Norwich City was Max O’Leary’s 39th Bristol City appearance of the season. The Robins’ number one has missed just one game so far this term, when Stefan Bajic got the nod in the Carabao Cup defeat to Coventry City all the way back in August. While the academy graduate was inspired in the Reds’ draw with Sheffield United in midweek, his display against the Canaries may well have been his best of the season.
The whole of Ashton Gate would have been waiting for the net to bulge when Callum Doyle stabbed a shot goalward minutes after Mark Sykes’ opener. The 21-year-old did well to generate the power and steer his effort low to O’Leary’s right, but the stopper got down to not only save but push the shot well away from his goal. Seconds later, he did the same to deny Emiliano Marcondes’ follow-up and that passage of play summed up his evening.
In total, the academy graduate made five saves and prevented 1.36 goals. While Sykes and Nahki Wells’ strikes may have won City the game on paper, the Robins wouldn’t have been heading into the international break with three points under their belt had it not been for the exploits of their ‘keeper between the posts.
“Top,” Liam Manning simply replied when asked about O’Leary’s performance. “Top, top saves. You don’t come away with the points unless he makes the saves.
“We had some key people step up in key moments tonight and that’s what you need, you need the whole squad to do it and various people have done it at different times, but Max certainly stepped up tonight.”
Both you reading this as a supporter and me writing this as a journalist will know that we are quick to criticise goalkeepers when they make mistakes and in turn, I think it is only right that we give O’Leary his flowers for his showing against Johannes Hoff Thorup’s side. The Reds’ number one seems to have found his rhythm between the posts in recent weeks and that should only be a good thing for the Robins between now and the end of the campaign.
With matches against the likes of Leeds United, Sunderland and Burnley to come after the international break, it wouldn’t be a surprise if he and the rest of City’s backline have a couple of busy afternoons in these final eight matches. Whether or not he steps up again as he did on Friday evening, could determine where Manning’s side ends up between now and the end of the season.
The one worry
As it should be after a night like Friday, this verdict has been overwhelmingly positive so far and rightly so. Bristol City fans should be excited, their team is closing in on something special and Liam Manning and his players deserve to be celebrated.
However, the win over Norwich did bring with it one bit of bad news that could prove to be very important. Just a matter of minutes after team news landed at Ashton Gate, and George Tanner was missing from the starting line-up, rumours of an operation on a knee injury were confirmed by the Robins. While Manning is hopeful the versatile defender will feature before the end of the campaign, it sounds like it could be touch and go whether or not we see the 25-year-old before May.
I’m sure all of you will have your own opinions on Tanner and I’m aware there are some supporters who don’t believe he offers enough in an attacking sense as a right-back. However, in this current City system where the right-sided centre-back regularly has to roll into a 4-4-2, he is the perfect fit. Following Luke McNally’s injury against Swansea City, he has made that position his own and looked just as solid a centre-back as Rob Dickie and Zak Vyner at times.
Manning’s side managed to cope without the former Manchester United prospect on Friday night as Cam Pring moved to a deeper role and Vyner reverted to the right of the back three. Because of the adaptability of the players in this squad, City have found a way to still use the same system even while Tanner, McNally, Ross McCrorie and Josh Campbell-Slowey are injured, and after both Rob Atkinson and Kal Naismith left on loan in January.
But the concern will be that the Reds are now one injury away from being incredibly short of defensive cover. If any of Pring, Vyner, Dickie or Haydon Roberts pick up an issue before Tanner or McCrorie returns, it is hard to see how the Robins will be able to continue with this three-at-the-back system, unless Elijah Morrison is able and trusted to make the step-up.
Hopefully, it won’t matter and City will navigate these final eight games without any issues arising. Regardless of what happens, losing Tanner at this stage is a blow.
Keep on dreaming
That’s my little bit of negativity for the weekend out of the way, let’s end this on a more positive note.
Just three months ago, following Bristol City’s 2-0 defeat to West Brom at The Hawthorns in the final match before Christmas, I wrote in my verdict that Liam Manning’s side were at risk of starting their usual mid-season, mid-table drift having slipped eight points away from the play-off positions. Since that day, the Robins have played 16 times in the Championship, only lost twice and established themselves as genuine contenders in this year’s top-six race.
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Yes, there have been far too many draws in that run of games, with matches against the likes of Plymouth Argyle, Hull City and Cardiff City standing out as opportunities missed. But there have equally been nights like the away win at Millwall, the battling point away to Sheffield United and home wins under the lights against Middlesbrough and Norwich that have felt like real statements of intent.
Whether it be by hook or by crook, Manning has found a way to keep that points column ticking over since the festive period and it has meant that the play-off and promotion dream remains alive heading into the final stretch of games.
“You want people to be excited, you want there to be a buzz, you want there to be an energy and you want people to dream,” the head coach told Bristol Live after the full-time whistle on Friday evening, before caveating with his usual measured approach.
“But our job is to make sure that we stay grounded and focused. I want to push the lads and ultimately, it’s where are we after another eight?”
Nothing is done yet and while at the time of writing City are in the top-six, that could well have changed completely come 5:00pm on Saturday afternoon. However, for the next two weeks over the international break, at best the Robins will be in the play-offs and at worst, they will be within touching distance of the teams occupying those places.
To steal a Manning-ism, fans should “enjoy the journey” for these next few weeks. The Reds haven’t had this much to play for at this stage of the season for a long time.