Jump to content
IGNORED

Match Report: Injury hit City's pitiful promotion chase continues going backwards


Olé

Recommended Posts

The curious case of promotion chasing Bristol City and their injury hit descent into rank average Championship also rans lurched on to a third consecutive - and perhaps worst - weekend failure, this time blowing a 2-0 lead at lively but ultimately very limited bottom club Barnsley, the latest of 2-2 Oakwell draws in many ways a far more embarrassing result than the recent 3-0 capitulation at Luton Town as Lee Johnson's men wrote off their promotion chances on live TV.

Since the international break - often an achilles heel for City - the quiet assault on promotion has resembled more of a punch drunk retreat, stumbling through supposedly easier fixtures with little sense of superiority or strategy, swinging wildly but aimlessly at far better drilled opponents. Indeed inside a fortnight this was the second time facing a promoted side, the second strugglers bereft of form, and for a second consecutive week a blown shot at the automatic places.

And City's pitiful recent return when given such an opportunity to confirm their promotion credentials - something they're only too happy to allow the media to embellish - tells the real, depressing story. In truth, despite Lee Johnson's men bundling their way into a two goal lead, the disjointed away side were always second best to a sharper but often misfiring Barnsley, yet it was still no surprise when the divisions worst side rallied and leveled the game with the final kick.

Nestled at the bottom of a hill and built like a proper old ground, Oakwell is a forbidding if ultimately rather tame place to go, and under the lights in swirling drizzle and darkness, City set about their opponents. With banned Johnson in the stands, and three surprise changes in the team - record signing Kalas back in defence and forgotten man Marley Watkins tested up front - if was the away side who showed first, hitting diagonals to the wing, attacking the final third.

Already all over their struggling opponents, just inside the quarter hour another sweeping move saw captain Brownhill win the second ball in midfield and drill a perfectly weighted first time pass out to Weimann whose quick inside ball freed O'Dowda who raced toward the box and slammed a low shot in at goal that the keeper held. City had come out firing and by the midway point in the half they'd sprung the marauding Pereira repeatedly on the right to win a series of corners.

However a feature of City's rise has been a failure to create or finish chances to capitalize on their busy endeavour and when Brownhill dropped to the floor for a second time in succumbing to a first half knock which saw him exit the game against his old side, it already appeared that the visitors, now short on passers, had run out of ideas. Eliasson entered as City doubled their attacking intentions but the hosts were already exploiting a now shapeless and aimless away side.

On 27 Barnsley broke convincingly at City's backline and the now familiar sight of opponents roaming in front of our retreating defenders saw the ball fed right to youngster Wilks who ran at his man before curling an inch perfect early shot to the far top corner which Bentley did brilliantly to spring away to his right and tip over. Minutes later Wilks had a free header from an unchallenged right wing cross that he headed just wide. Captain Brownhill's exit was now inevitable.

After the change it only got worse as the struggling hosts worked the ball well in front of City's goal to find Mowatt in some space on the edge of the box and from the left channel he slammed an unerring low shot past Bentley and just beyond the far post. The visitors new keeper has kept Lee Johnson's men in games this season and having denied Wilks earlier, he confirmed his Player of the Season credentials minutes later with a world class save - his best yet.

With just over ten minutes remaining in the half the hosts broke quickly down the left and from Brown's early cross Conor Chaplin found himself in space at the near post to apply the finish, flashing a shot into the bottom corner which Bentley somehow reacted fast enough to tip desperately onto post and bar, the ball spinning loose in the six yard box and Eliasson hacking away. What must Johnson have been making of this deteriorating performance up in the stand.

And yet somehow City stole into a scarcely deserved lead a few minutes before the half, Eliasson fed Watkins down the left flank and he out ran his marker and turned for goal before being chopped down after cutting in to the edge of the area. From the resultant short free kick that man Eliasson lifted a perfect ball to the far post where Ashley Williams rose highest to power a header down under the keeper and over the goalline - his first City goal putting the visitors ahead.

After half time, and on a heavy pitch drenched in now persistent rain, the match descended into a scrappy, forgettable affair that must surely have been terrible viewing on Sky TV for all but the most dedicated fans. Barnsley were routinely  passing the ball better into the final third before firing wild long range shots info the stand, whereas City now punted early balls over the top in the hope someone would run onto them and make us look like anything other than a long ball side.

Ten minutes after the restart a brief moment of quality out on City's left in front of their travelling fans saw Eliasson and O'Dowda exchange passes to carve a path through the defence, and from a resultant corner the Swedish winger saw his cross to the near post almost glanced quickly inside the keeper by the lively Watkins. The surprise 'striker' was anonymous at times when bereft of service, but against his old club was among our better players if given an opportunity. 

Midway through the second half tussle a City break saw a two handed shove on O'Dowda go unpenalised, yet from the clearance a similar clash on halfway saw Barnsley awarded a free kick by referee Jarred Gillett, on work experience from Australia. Such rapid inconsistency had City's bench protesting loudly and the match was stopped as the official - oddly lenient with his decision making until Barnsley needed it in the later stages - lectured the visitors coaching staff.

Around the 70 minute mark City rallied and should have put the match out of reach. In chaotic scenes Weimann stole inside the disorganised home defence from the right, drawing the keeper before drilling a point blank near post shot that the stopper beat away, rebounding off a defender for a corner. Again that man Eliasson lifted a ball into the box from the right wing flag kick and again it was the visitors - this time Weimann - rising highest to nod into the far corner.

With City now "in second" on the live tables that should have been it, and with the goal coming right in front of their bank of loyal fans, the away support was in good voice and if anything, those singing for various members of the visiting coaching staff to "bounce around" would quickly learn how ridiculous - if not at least naive - that always is, given that on the pitch, Barnsley were hard done by and for all their lack of quality, were still out passing and out thinking City.

We had by now oddly shuffled our defence to replace Moore with Baker - when the threat was more mobile than aerial - and sure enough with just quarter of an our remaining and with the hosts routinely firing pot shots at City's goal, the pressure told as Kalas blocked Woodrow's shot and from the left wing corner another young Tyke Aapo Halme (me either) headed in. It was unforgivable to concede from a set piece after the defensive change but frankly unsurprising.

Semenyo was on now for Watkins and unlike recent anonymity made a decent go of running at home defenders when asked to, but like Watkins before him it was utterly aimless stuff as City failed to put a foot on the ball and continually hit early long balls to the front that offered little service and simply surrendered possession time and again. Yet with 5 left O'Dowda went on a stunning weaving run through Barnsley's defence, riding several challenges before slipping in the box.

With rain still falling and the floodlights straining for superiority in a dark and miserable Yorkshire night, every long suffering City fan knows exactly what was in store on this Halloween night and with Barnsley continuing to create chances and corners - Woodrow and Diaby going close and Bentley claiming one cross well - the inevitable happened as deep in injury time and with the final kick of the game, Woodrow turned in at close range from substitute Schmidt.

Nervous expectation in the away terrace at what was coming gave way to shell shocked, stupified exit - City had really managed to blow it - as the ref blew for full time immediately after and fans drifted out in utterly stunned silence. The visitors scarcely deserved their two goal lead but to throw it away so cheaply was unforgivable and wasting the second consecutive chance to get into the automatic promotion places and put down a marker spoke volumes.

With manager Johnson up in the stand and captain Brownhill's early departure clearly affecting City fluency, it would be easy to say the side lacked leadership to compound their injury-hit selection problems, but to do so would be making cheap excuses for a more than capable squad. City have invested in strength in depth, the players have the quality, but the last few weeks suggest it is the quality of plan to beat some of the divisions poorest teams that is pitifully lacking.

 

Bentley 8 It really is incredible how much he keeps us in games, we are at risk of being a very poor side if not for him

Kalas 5 Not sure he was 100%, not sure he was attacking the first ball in the way he would fully fit

Williams 6 Great goal and always looks composed and safety first, little bit exposed for pace when Barnsley move the ball quickly

Moore 6 In a team bereft of passing our only ball playing defender was the natural choice to take off when you want to put your foot on the ball and hold onto a lead

Pereira 5 We pushed both wing backs up early and I thought Pereira was a real threat in behind them early on as we hit quick balls to the right, unfortunately - and this is becoming a thing with him - the longer the game goes on, the more mistakes he is prone to make, giving the ball away in dangerous areas

Rowe 5 Both wing backs were poor defensively, can't really remember much Rowe did, we certainly never moved the ball forward with any quality

Brownhill 6 Probably the only vision came for the 25 odd minutes he was on the pitch, I don't know if the growing Nagy rumours and innuendo are true but it comes to something when Brownhill is your only player able to pass the ball

Massengo 5 Still tigerish and sometimes the only player who looks like he wants it, but chasing down and over-commiting to the challenge is now getting predictable, if the player avoids the tackle we are outnumbered in midfield

O'Dowda 6 Couple of great runs but that is literally all he offers, not his fault but a waste in a midfield three, we are sorely lacking ball players

Weimann 6 Usual energetic self working with scraps

Watkins 6 Perhaps I am being charitable given how desperate we are up front but I thought he was a nuisance when properly fed, which he wasn't often

 

Eliasson 6 Several good set pieces but fairly anonymous otherwise, all down to the formation, lots of wingers and yet no real wing play with midfield playing from inside, rarely got to the byline or delivered crosses from open play 

Baker 5 We bring on a ball winning aerial threat at the back for 15 minutes at 2-0 up and concede two goals, good work all round 

Semenyo 6 By his own recent poor standards I thought he at least got stuck in, the service was shocking, literally run onto long balls or bust

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 minutes ago, Olé said:

The curious case of promotion chasing Bristol City and their injury hit descent into rank average Championship also rans lurched on to a third consecutive - and perhaps worst - weekend failure, this time blowing a 2-0 lead at lively but ultimately very limited bottom club Barnsley, the latest of 2-2 Oakwell draws in many ways a far more embarrassing result than the recent 3-0 capitulation at Luton Town as Lee Johnson's men wrote off their promotion chances on live TV.

Since the international break - often an achilles heel for City - the quiet assault on promotion has resembled more of a punch drunk retreat, stumbling through supposedly easier fixtures with little sense of superiority or strategy, swinging wildly but aimlessly at far better drilled opponents. Indeed inside a fortnight this was the second time facing a promoted side, the second strugglers bereft of form, and for a second consecutive week a blown shot at the automatic places.

And City's pitiful recent return when given such an opportunity to confirm their promotion credentials - something they're only too happy to allow the media to embellish - tells the real, depressing story. In truth, despite Lee Johnson's men bundling their way into a two goal lead, the disjointed away side were always second best to a sharper but often misfiring Barnsley, yet it was still no surprise when the divisions worst side rallied and leveled the game with the final kick.

Nestled at the bottom of a hill and built like a proper old ground, Oakwell is a forbidding if ultimately rather tame place to go, and under the lights in swirling drizzle and darkness, City set about their opponents. With banned Johnson in the stands, and three surprise changes in the team - record signing Kalas back in defence and forgotten man Marley Watkins tested up front - if was the away side who showed first, hitting diagonals to the wing, attacking the final third.

Already all over their struggling opponents, just inside the quarter hour another sweeping move saw captain Brownhill win the second ball in midfield and drill a perfectly weighted first time pass out to Weimann whose quick inside ball freed O'Dowda who raced toward the box and slammed a low shot in at goal that the keeper held. City had come out firing and by the midway point in the half they'd sprung the marauding Pereira repeatedly on the right to win a series of corners.

However a feature of City's rise has been a failure to create or finish chances to capitalize on their busy endeavour and when Brownhill dropped to the floor for a second time in succumbing to a first half knock which saw him exit the game against his old side, it already appeared that the visitors, now short on passers, had run out of ideas. Eliasson entered as City doubled their attacking intentions but the hosts were already exploiting a now shapeless and aimless away side.

On 27 Barnsley broke convincingly at City's backline and the now familiar sight of opponents roaming in front of our retreating defenders saw the ball fed right to youngster Wilks who ran at his man before curling an inch perfect early shot to the far top corner which Bentley did brilliantly to spring away to his right and tip over. Minutes later Wilks had a free header from an unchallenged right wing cross that he headed just wide. Captain Brownhill's exit was now inevitable.

After the change it only got worse as the struggling hosts worked the ball well in front of City's goal to find Mowatt in some space on the edge of the box and from the left channel he slammed an unerring low shot past Bentley and just beyond the far post. The visitors new keeper has kept Lee Johnson's men in games this season and having denied Wilks earlier, he confirmed his Player of the Season credentials minutes later with a world class save - his best yet.

With just over ten minutes remaining in the half the hosts broke quickly down the left and from Brown's early cross Conor Chaplin found himself in space at the near post to apply the finish, flashing a shot into the bottom corner which Bentley somehow reacted fast enough to tip desperately onto post and bar, the ball spinning loose in the six yard box and Eliasson hacking away. What much Johnson have been making of this deteriorating performance up in the stand.

And yet somehow City stole into a scarcely deserved lead a few minutes before the half, Eliasson fed Watkins down the left flank and he out ran his marker and turned for goal before being chopped down after cutting in to the edge of the area. From the resultant short free kick that man Eliasson lifted a perfect ball to the far post where Ashley Williams rose highest to power a header down under the keeper and over the goalline - his first City goal putting the visitors ahead.

After half time, an on a heavy pitch drenched in now persistent rain, the match descended into a scrappy, forgettable affair that must surely have been terrible viewing on Sky TV for all but the most dedicated fans. Barnsley were routinely  passing the ball better into the final third before firing wild long range shots info the stand, whereas City now punted early balls over the top in the hope someone would run onto them and make us look like anything other than a long ball side.

Ten minutes after the restart a brief moment of quality out on City's left in front of their travelling fans saw Eliasson and O'Dowda exchange passes to carve a path through the defence, and from a resultant corner the Swedish winger saw his cross to the near post almost glanced quickly inside the keeper by the lively Watkins. The surprise 'striker' was anonymous at times when bereft of service, but against his old club was among our better players if given an opportunity. 

Midway through the second half tussle a City break saw a two handed shove on O'Dowda go unpenalised, yet from the clearance a similar clash on halfway saw Barnsley awarded a free kick by referee Jarred Gillett, on work experience from Australia. Such rapid inconsistency had City's bench protesting loudly and the match was stopped as the official - oddly lenient with his decision making until Barnsley needed it in the later stages - lectured the visitors coaching staff.

Around the 70 minute mark City rallied and should have put the match out of reach. In chaotic scenes Weimann stole inside the disorganised home defence from the right, drawing the keeper before drilling a point blank near post shot that the stopper beat away, rebounding off a defender for a corner. Again that man Eliasson lifted a ball into the box from the right wing flag lock and again it was the visitors - this time Weimann - rising highest to nod into the far corner.

With City now "in second" on the live tables that should have been it, and with the goal coming right in front of their bank of loyal fans, the away support was in good voice and if anything, those singing for various members of the visiting coaching staff to "bounce around" would quickly learn how ridiculous - if not at least naive - that always is, given that on the pitch, Barnsley were hard done by and for all their lack of quality, were still out passing and out thinking City.

The hosts had oddly shuffled their defence to replace Moore with Baker - when the threat was more mobile than aerial - and sure enough with just quarter of an our remaining and with the hosts routinely firing pot shots at City's goal, the pressure told as Kalas blocked Woodrow's shot and from the left wing corner another young Tyke Aapo Halme (me either) headed in. It was unforgivable to concede from a set piece after the defensive change but frankly unsurprising.

Semenyo was on now for Watkins and unlike recent anonymity made a decent go of running at home defenders when asked to, but like Watkins before him it was utterly aimless stuff as City failed to put a foot on the ball and continually hit early long balls to the front that offered little service and simply surrendered possession time and again. Yet with 5 left O'Dowda went on a stunning weaving run through Barnsley's defence, riding several challenges before slipping in the box.

With rain still falling and the floodlights straining for superiority in a dark and miserable Yorkshire night, every long suffering City fan knows exactly what was in store on this Halloween night and with Barnsley continuing to create chances and corners - Woodrow and Diaby going close and Bentley claiming one cross well - the inevitable happened as deep in injury time and with the final kick of the game, Woodrow turned in at close range from substitute Schmidt.

Nervous expectation in the away terrace at what was coming gave way to shell shocked, stupified exit - City had really managed to blow it - as the ref blew for full time immediately after and fans drifted out in utterly stunned silence. The visitors scarcely deserved their two goal lead but to throw it away so cheaply was unforgivable and wasting the second consecutive chance to get into the automatic promotion places and put down a marker spoke volumes.

With manager Johnson up in the stand and captain Brownhill's early departure clearly affecting City fluency, it would be easy to say the side lacked leadership to compound their injury-hit selection problems, but to do so would be making cheap excuses for a more than capable squad. City have invested in strength in depth, the players have the quality, but the last few weeks suggest it is the quality of plan to beat some of the divisions poorest teams that is pitifully lacking.

 

Bentley 8 It really is incredible how much he keeps us in games, we are at risk of being a very poor side if not for him

Kalas 5 Not sure he was 100%, not sure he was attacking the first ball in the way he would fully fit

Williams 6 Great goal and always looks composed and safety first, little bit exposed for pace when Barnsley move the ball quickly

Moore 6 In a team bereft of passing our only ball playing defender was the natural choice to take off when you want to put your foot on the ball and hold onto a lead

Pereira 5 We pushed both wing backs up early and I thought Pereira was a real threat in behind them early on as we hit quick balls to the right, unfortunately - and this is becoming a thing with him - the longer the game goes on, the more mistakes he is prone to make, giving the ball away in dangerous areas

Rowe 5 Both wing backs were poor defensively, can't really remember much Rowe did, we certainly never moved the ball forward with any quality

Brownhill 6 Probably the only vision came for the 25 odd minutes he was on the pitch, I don't know if the growing Nagy rumours and innuendo are true but it comes to something when Brownhill is your only player able to pass the ball

Massengo 5 Still tigerish and sometimes the only player who looks like he wants it, but chasing down and over-commiting to the challenge is now getting predictable, if the player avoids the tackle we are outnumbered in midfield

O'Dowda 6 Couple of great runs but that is literally all he offers, not his fault but a waste in a midfield three, we are sorely lacking ball players

Weimann 6 Usual energetic self working with scraps

Watkins 6 Perhaps I am being charitable given how desperate we are up front but I thought he was a nuisance when properly fed, which he wasn't often

 

Eliasson 6 Several good set pieces but fairly anonymous otherwise, all down to the formation, lots of wingers and yet no real wing play with midfield playing from inside, rarely got to the byline or delivered crosses from open play 

Baker 5 We bring on a ball winning aerial threat at the back for 15 minutes at 2-0 up and concede two goals, good work all round 

Semenyo 6 By his own recent poor standards I thought he at least got stuck in, the service was shocking, literally run onto long balls or bust

Go and have a cup of coffee and a bacon and egg sandwich. You could of cooked bacon and egg sandwiches for 20 people the time it must of took you to type that negativity or are you copying the Saturday edition of the sun newspaper.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 minutes ago, Olé said:

The curious case of promotion chasing Bristol City and their injury hit descent into rank average Championship also rans lurched on to a third consecutive - and perhaps worst - weekend failure, this time blowing a 2-0 lead at lively but ultimately very limited bottom club Barnsley, the latest of 2-2 Oakwell draws in many ways a far more embarrassing result than the recent 3-0 capitulation at Luton Town as Lee Johnson's men wrote off their promotion chances on live TV.

Since the international break - often an achilles heel for City - the quiet assault on promotion has resembled more of a punch drunk retreat, stumbling through supposedly easier fixtures with little sense of superiority or strategy, swinging wildly but aimlessly at far better drilled opponents. Indeed inside a fortnight this was the second time facing a promoted side, the second strugglers bereft of form, and for a second consecutive week a blown shot at the automatic places.

And City's pitiful recent return when given such an opportunity to confirm their promotion credentials - something they're only too happy to allow the media to embellish - tells the real, depressing story. In truth, despite Lee Johnson's men bundling their way into a two goal lead, the disjointed away side were always second best to a sharper but often misfiring Barnsley, yet it was still no surprise when the divisions worst side rallied and leveled the game with the final kick.

Nestled at the bottom of a hill and built like a proper old ground, Oakwell is a forbidding if ultimately rather tame place to go, and under the lights in swirling drizzle and darkness, City set about their opponents. With banned Johnson in the stands, and three surprise changes in the team - record signing Kalas back in defence and forgotten man Marley Watkins tested up front - if was the away side who showed first, hitting diagonals to the wing, attacking the final third.

Already all over their struggling opponents, just inside the quarter hour another sweeping move saw captain Brownhill win the second ball in midfield and drill a perfectly weighted first time pass out to Weimann whose quick inside ball freed O'Dowda who raced toward the box and slammed a low shot in at goal that the keeper held. City had come out firing and by the midway point in the half they'd sprung the marauding Pereira repeatedly on the right to win a series of corners.

However a feature of City's rise has been a failure to create or finish chances to capitalize on their busy endeavour and when Brownhill dropped to the floor for a second time in succumbing to a first half knock which saw him exit the game against his old side, it already appeared that the visitors, now short on passers, had run out of ideas. Eliasson entered as City doubled their attacking intentions but the hosts were already exploiting a now shapeless and aimless away side.

On 27 Barnsley broke convincingly at City's backline and the now familiar sight of opponents roaming in front of our retreating defenders saw the ball fed right to youngster Wilks who ran at his man before curling an inch perfect early shot to the far top corner which Bentley did brilliantly to spring away to his right and tip over. Minutes later Wilks had a free header from an unchallenged right wing cross that he headed just wide. Captain Brownhill's exit was now inevitable.

After the change it only got worse as the struggling hosts worked the ball well in front of City's goal to find Mowatt in some space on the edge of the box and from the left channel he slammed an unerring low shot past Bentley and just beyond the far post. The visitors new keeper has kept Lee Johnson's men in games this season and having denied Wilks earlier, he confirmed his Player of the Season credentials minutes later with a world class save - his best yet.

With just over ten minutes remaining in the half the hosts broke quickly down the left and from Brown's early cross Conor Chaplin found himself in space at the near post to apply the finish, flashing a shot into the bottom corner which Bentley somehow reacted fast enough to tip desperately onto post and bar, the ball spinning loose in the six yard box and Eliasson hacking away. What much Johnson have been making of this deteriorating performance up in the stand.

And yet somehow City stole into a scarcely deserved lead a few minutes before the half, Eliasson fed Watkins down the left flank and he out ran his marker and turned for goal before being chopped down after cutting in to the edge of the area. From the resultant short free kick that man Eliasson lifted a perfect ball to the far post where Ashley Williams rose highest to power a header down under the keeper and over the goalline - his first City goal putting the visitors ahead.

After half time, an on a heavy pitch drenched in now persistent rain, the match descended into a scrappy, forgettable affair that must surely have been terrible viewing on Sky TV for all but the most dedicated fans. Barnsley were routinely  passing the ball better into the final third before firing wild long range shots info the stand, whereas City now punted early balls over the top in the hope someone would run onto them and make us look like anything other than a long ball side.

Ten minutes after the restart a brief moment of quality out on City's left in front of their travelling fans saw Eliasson and O'Dowda exchange passes to carve a path through the defence, and from a resultant corner the Swedish winger saw his cross to the near post almost glanced quickly inside the keeper by the lively Watkins. The surprise 'striker' was anonymous at times when bereft of service, but against his old club was among our better players if given an opportunity. 

Midway through the second half tussle a City break saw a two handed shove on O'Dowda go unpenalised, yet from the clearance a similar clash on halfway saw Barnsley awarded a free kick by referee Jarred Gillett, on work experience from Australia. Such rapid inconsistency had City's bench protesting loudly and the match was stopped as the official - oddly lenient with his decision making until Barnsley needed it in the later stages - lectured the visitors coaching staff.

Around the 70 minute mark City rallied and should have put the match out of reach. In chaotic scenes Weimann stole inside the disorganised home defence from the right, drawing the keeper before drilling a point blank near post shot that the stopper beat away, rebounding off a defender for a corner. Again that man Eliasson lifted a ball into the box from the right wing flag lock and again it was the visitors - this time Weimann - rising highest to nod into the far corner.

With City now "in second" on the live tables that should have been it, and with the goal coming right in front of their bank of loyal fans, the away support was in good voice and if anything, those singing for various members of the visiting coaching staff to "bounce around" would quickly learn how ridiculous - if not at least naive - that always is, given that on the pitch, Barnsley were hard done by and for all their lack of quality, were still out passing and out thinking City.

The hosts had oddly shuffled their defence to replace Moore with Baker - when the threat was more mobile than aerial - and sure enough with just quarter of an our remaining and with the hosts routinely firing pot shots at City's goal, the pressure told as Kalas blocked Woodrow's shot and from the left wing corner another young Tyke Aapo Halme (me either) headed in. It was unforgivable to concede from a set piece after the defensive change but frankly unsurprising.

Semenyo was on now for Watkins and unlike recent anonymity made a decent go of running at home defenders when asked to, but like Watkins before him it was utterly aimless stuff as City failed to put a foot on the ball and continually hit early long balls to the front that offered little service and simply surrendered possession time and again. Yet with 5 left O'Dowda went on a stunning weaving run through Barnsley's defence, riding several challenges before slipping in the box.

With rain still falling and the floodlights straining for superiority in a dark and miserable Yorkshire night, every long suffering City fan knows exactly what was in store on this Halloween night and with Barnsley continuing to create chances and corners - Woodrow and Diaby going close and Bentley claiming one cross well - the inevitable happened as deep in injury time and with the final kick of the game, Woodrow turned in at close range from substitute Schmidt.

Nervous expectation in the away terrace at what was coming gave way to shell shocked, stupified exit - City had really managed to blow it - as the ref blew for full time immediately after and fans drifted out in utterly stunned silence. The visitors scarcely deserved their two goal lead but to throw it away so cheaply was unforgivable and wasting the second consecutive chance to get into the automatic promotion places and put down a marker spoke volumes.

With manager Johnson up in the stand and captain Brownhill's early departure clearly affecting City fluency, it would be easy to say the side lacked leadership to compound their injury-hit selection problems, but to do so would be making cheap excuses for a more than capable squad. City have invested in strength in depth, the players have the quality, but the last few weeks suggest it is the quality of plan to beat some of the divisions poorest teams that is pitifully lacking.

 

Bentley 8 It really is incredible how much he keeps us in games, we are at risk of being a very poor side if not for him

Kalas 5 Not sure he was 100%, not sure he was attacking the first ball in the way he would fully fit

Williams 6 Great goal and always looks composed and safety first, little bit exposed for pace when Barnsley move the ball quickly

Moore 6 In a team bereft of passing our only ball playing defender was the natural choice to take off when you want to put your foot on the ball and hold onto a lead

Pereira 5 We pushed both wing backs up early and I thought Pereira was a real threat in behind them early on as we hit quick balls to the right, unfortunately - and this is becoming a thing with him - the longer the game goes on, the more mistakes he is prone to make, giving the ball away in dangerous areas

Rowe 5 Both wing backs were poor defensively, can't really remember much Rowe did, we certainly never moved the ball forward with any quality

Brownhill 6 Probably the only vision came for the 25 odd minutes he was on the pitch, I don't know if the growing Nagy rumours and innuendo are true but it comes to something when Brownhill is your only player able to pass the ball

Massengo 5 Still tigerish and sometimes the only player who looks like he wants it, but chasing down and over-commiting to the challenge is now getting predictable, if the player avoids the tackle we are outnumbered in midfield

O'Dowda 6 Couple of great runs but that is literally all he offers, not his fault but a waste in a midfield three, we are sorely lacking ball players

Weimann 6 Usual energetic self working with scraps

Watkins 6 Perhaps I am being charitable given how desperate we are up front but I thought he was a nuisance when properly fed, which he wasn't often

 

Eliasson 6 Several good set pieces but fairly anonymous otherwise, all down to the formation, lots of wingers and yet no real wing play with midfield playing from inside, rarely got to the byline or delivered crosses from open play 

Baker 5 We bring on a ball winning aerial threat at the back for 15 minutes at 2-0 up and concede two goals, good work all round 

Semenyo 6 By his own recent poor standards I thought he at least got stuck in, the service was shocking, literally run onto long balls or bust

You’re being kind to Semenyo there, again looked devoid of any passion. The only thing he wanted last night was a punch up.

Poor all round, severe lack of entertainment and boring to watch even when we were 2-0 up

Sh!te subs 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The only positive I can see is that we seem to be on a drawing streak rather than a losing one.

We all know LJ is prone to going on runs of poor form that previously has meant runs of losses. If we can convert those to draws and still have the winning runs then that's progress - of sorts.

It really has been dire to watch the last two games though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, petehinton said:

Totally agree with you on the Bentley point mate. Must be 80% of games now where he’s pretty much kept us in it. Scary to think where we’d be without him. 

Still can’t believe he took Moore off too. 

While I agree that Bentley kept us in it, I was frustrated at the end when he was lumping balls up front, meaning we lost possession at a crucial time

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, DT The Optimist said:

I think spot on. A point against a poor Barnsley after being 2 up sums it up.  Watkins I thought was a positive. He can play up front and thought he showed good hold up play and movement. 

Barnsley were not poor they played their hearts out under their temporary coach. We simply were not good enough on the day 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

42 minutes ago, Olé said:

The curious case of promotion chasing Bristol City and their injury hit descent into rank average Championship also rans lurched on to a third consecutive - and perhaps worst - weekend failure, this time blowing a 2-0 lead at lively but ultimately very limited bottom club Barnsley, the latest of 2-2 Oakwell draws in many ways a far more embarrassing result than the recent 3-0 capitulation at Luton Town as Lee Johnson's men wrote off their promotion chances on live TV.

Since the international break - often an achilles heel for City - the quiet assault on promotion has resembled more of a punch drunk retreat, stumbling through supposedly easier fixtures with little sense of superiority or strategy, swinging wildly but aimlessly at far better drilled opponents. Indeed inside a fortnight this was the second time facing a promoted side, the second strugglers bereft of form, and for a second consecutive week a blown shot at the automatic places.

And City's pitiful recent return when given such an opportunity to confirm their promotion credentials - something they're only too happy to allow the media to embellish - tells the real, depressing story. In truth, despite Lee Johnson's men bundling their way into a two goal lead, the disjointed away side were always second best to a sharper but often misfiring Barnsley, yet it was still no surprise when the divisions worst side rallied and leveled the game with the final kick.

Nestled at the bottom of a hill and built like a proper old ground, Oakwell is a forbidding if ultimately rather tame place to go, and under the lights in swirling drizzle and darkness, City set about their opponents. With banned Johnson in the stands, and three surprise changes in the team - record signing Kalas back in defence and forgotten man Marley Watkins tested up front - if was the away side who showed first, hitting diagonals to the wing, attacking the final third.

Already all over their struggling opponents, just inside the quarter hour another sweeping move saw captain Brownhill win the second ball in midfield and drill a perfectly weighted first time pass out to Weimann whose quick inside ball freed O'Dowda who raced toward the box and slammed a low shot in at goal that the keeper held. City had come out firing and by the midway point in the half they'd sprung the marauding Pereira repeatedly on the right to win a series of corners.

However a feature of City's rise has been a failure to create or finish chances to capitalize on their busy endeavour and when Brownhill dropped to the floor for a second time in succumbing to a first half knock which saw him exit the game against his old side, it already appeared that the visitors, now short on passers, had run out of ideas. Eliasson entered as City doubled their attacking intentions but the hosts were already exploiting a now shapeless and aimless away side.

On 27 Barnsley broke convincingly at City's backline and the now familiar sight of opponents roaming in front of our retreating defenders saw the ball fed right to youngster Wilks who ran at his man before curling an inch perfect early shot to the far top corner which Bentley did brilliantly to spring away to his right and tip over. Minutes later Wilks had a free header from an unchallenged right wing cross that he headed just wide. Captain Brownhill's exit was now inevitable.

After the change it only got worse as the struggling hosts worked the ball well in front of City's goal to find Mowatt in some space on the edge of the box and from the left channel he slammed an unerring low shot past Bentley and just beyond the far post. The visitors new keeper has kept Lee Johnson's men in games this season and having denied Wilks earlier, he confirmed his Player of the Season credentials minutes later with a world class save - his best yet.

With just over ten minutes remaining in the half the hosts broke quickly down the left and from Brown's early cross Conor Chaplin found himself in space at the near post to apply the finish, flashing a shot into the bottom corner which Bentley somehow reacted fast enough to tip desperately onto post and bar, the ball spinning loose in the six yard box and Eliasson hacking away. What must Johnson have been making of this deteriorating performance up in the stand.

And yet somehow City stole into a scarcely deserved lead a few minutes before the half, Eliasson fed Watkins down the left flank and he out ran his marker and turned for goal before being chopped down after cutting in to the edge of the area. From the resultant short free kick that man Eliasson lifted a perfect ball to the far post where Ashley Williams rose highest to power a header down under the keeper and over the goalline - his first City goal putting the visitors ahead.

After half time, and on a heavy pitch drenched in now persistent rain, the match descended into a scrappy, forgettable affair that must surely have been terrible viewing on Sky TV for all but the most dedicated fans. Barnsley were routinely  passing the ball better into the final third before firing wild long range shots info the stand, whereas City now punted early balls over the top in the hope someone would run onto them and make us look like anything other than a long ball side.

Ten minutes after the restart a brief moment of quality out on City's left in front of their travelling fans saw Eliasson and O'Dowda exchange passes to carve a path through the defence, and from a resultant corner the Swedish winger saw his cross to the near post almost glanced quickly inside the keeper by the lively Watkins. The surprise 'striker' was anonymous at times when bereft of service, but against his old club was among our better players if given an opportunity. 

Midway through the second half tussle a City break saw a two handed shove on O'Dowda go unpenalised, yet from the clearance a similar clash on halfway saw Barnsley awarded a free kick by referee Jarred Gillett, on work experience from Australia. Such rapid inconsistency had City's bench protesting loudly and the match was stopped as the official - oddly lenient with his decision making until Barnsley needed it in the later stages - lectured the visitors coaching staff.

Around the 70 minute mark City rallied and should have put the match out of reach. In chaotic scenes Weimann stole inside the disorganised home defence from the right, drawing the keeper before drilling a point blank near post shot that the stopper beat away, rebounding off a defender for a corner. Again that man Eliasson lifted a ball into the box from the right wing flag kick and again it was the visitors - this time Weimann - rising highest to nod into the far corner.

With City now "in second" on the live tables that should have been it, and with the goal coming right in front of their bank of loyal fans, the away support was in good voice and if anything, those singing for various members of the visiting coaching staff to "bounce around" would quickly learn how ridiculous - if not at least naive - that always is, given that on the pitch, Barnsley were hard done by and for all their lack of quality, were still out passing and out thinking City.

We had by now oddly shuffled our defence to replace Moore with Baker - when the threat was more mobile than aerial - and sure enough with just quarter of an our remaining and with the hosts routinely firing pot shots at City's goal, the pressure told as Kalas blocked Woodrow's shot and from the left wing corner another young Tyke Aapo Halme (me either) headed in. It was unforgivable to concede from a set piece after the defensive change but frankly unsurprising.

Semenyo was on now for Watkins and unlike recent anonymity made a decent go of running at home defenders when asked to, but like Watkins before him it was utterly aimless stuff as City failed to put a foot on the ball and continually hit early long balls to the front that offered little service and simply surrendered possession time and again. Yet with 5 left O'Dowda went on a stunning weaving run through Barnsley's defence, riding several challenges before slipping in the box.

With rain still falling and the floodlights straining for superiority in a dark and miserable Yorkshire night, every long suffering City fan knows exactly what was in store on this Halloween night and with Barnsley continuing to create chances and corners - Woodrow and Diaby going close and Bentley claiming one cross well - the inevitable happened as deep in injury time and with the final kick of the game, Woodrow turned in at close range from substitute Schmidt.

Nervous expectation in the away terrace at what was coming gave way to shell shocked, stupified exit - City had really managed to blow it - as the ref blew for full time immediately after and fans drifted out in utterly stunned silence. The visitors scarcely deserved their two goal lead but to throw it away so cheaply was unforgivable and wasting the second consecutive chance to get into the automatic promotion places and put down a marker spoke volumes.

With manager Johnson up in the stand and captain Brownhill's early departure clearly affecting City fluency, it would be easy to say the side lacked leadership to compound their injury-hit selection problems, but to do so would be making cheap excuses for a more than capable squad. City have invested in strength in depth, the players have the quality, but the last few weeks suggest it is the quality of plan to beat some of the divisions poorest teams that is pitifully lacking.

 

Bentley 8 It really is incredible how much he keeps us in games, we are at risk of being a very poor side if not for him

Kalas 5 Not sure he was 100%, not sure he was attacking the first ball in the way he would fully fit

Williams 6 Great goal and always looks composed and safety first, little bit exposed for pace when Barnsley move the ball quickly

Moore 6 In a team bereft of passing our only ball playing defender was the natural choice to take off when you want to put your foot on the ball and hold onto a lead

Pereira 5 We pushed both wing backs up early and I thought Pereira was a real threat in behind them early on as we hit quick balls to the right, unfortunately - and this is becoming a thing with him - the longer the game goes on, the more mistakes he is prone to make, giving the ball away in dangerous areas

Rowe 5 Both wing backs were poor defensively, can't really remember much Rowe did, we certainly never moved the ball forward with any quality

Brownhill 6 Probably the only vision came for the 25 odd minutes he was on the pitch, I don't know if the growing Nagy rumours and innuendo are true but it comes to something when Brownhill is your only player able to pass the ball

Massengo 5 Still tigerish and sometimes the only player who looks like he wants it, but chasing down and over-commiting to the challenge is now getting predictable, if the player avoids the tackle we are outnumbered in midfield

O'Dowda 6 Couple of great runs but that is literally all he offers, not his fault but a waste in a midfield three, we are sorely lacking ball players

Weimann 6 Usual energetic self working with scraps

Watkins 6 Perhaps I am being charitable given how desperate we are up front but I thought he was a nuisance when properly fed, which he wasn't often

 

Eliasson 6 Several good set pieces but fairly anonymous otherwise, all down to the formation, lots of wingers and yet no real wing play with midfield playing from inside, rarely got to the byline or delivered crosses from open play 

Baker 5 We bring on a ball winning aerial threat at the back for 15 minutes at 2-0 up and concede two goals, good work all round 

Semenyo 6 By his own recent poor standards I thought he at least got stuck in, the service was shocking, literally run onto long balls or bust

Spot on ole , we are getting very predictable again, thanks for the wright up

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Admin

Another unerringly accurate report Rob,  I posted in the match day thread that I am a Johnson sceptic and whilst the season on season improvement on finishing place has somewhat pushed that scepticism to the back of my mind, these recent performances have started it off again.

We can blame the injury hit squad, but for me, on the pitch it looks disjointed, does the plan change too often, doesn’t the training from academy to first team reflect a plan and style, so players can come in and out of the side as seamlessly as possible.  On field leadership, or more importantly, the apparent lack of it is another factor, no one cajoling and ordering

Has Johnson hit his high water mark, I’m not sure, maybe he is progressing and we have to be patient, perhaps a couple of seasons ago, this would have been the start of one of his losing streaks, but now it’s just poor fare and scraping by to stop those streaks from littering each season.

For us to be sat 5th in the Championship playing the way we are, must also say something about the Championship quality this season, is it not as good, certainly from the games I have seen, the gap between the top 6 in the Premier League and the top of the Championship looks wider than ever.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

36 minutes ago, City oz said:

Go and have a cup of coffee and a bacon and egg sandwich. You could of cooked bacon and egg sandwiches for 20 people the time it must of took you to type that negativity or are you copying the Saturday edition of the sun newspaper.

City have been poor for ages.

Anyone who actually watches them, knows this.

I made peace with who we were and the model that’s been built at the start of last season, but I’m not going to knock others who are genuinely frustrated with what we see.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, City oz said:

Barnsley were not poor they played their hearts out under their temporary coach. We simply were not good enough on the day 

Barnsley will finish somewhere near the bottom as they’re not very good. 
 

City will finish 12 as they are an average team.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

42 minutes ago, City oz said:

Go and have a cup of coffee and a bacon and egg sandwich. You could of cooked bacon and egg sandwiches for 20 people the time it must of took you to type that negativity or are you copying the Saturday edition of the sun newspaper.

Those that can,  do........those that cannot, just criticise from afar, in your case literally?   Lets see you write something of similar quality and observation?...........Or are you only capable of glib trolling?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I do worry that ( if? ) when we have a full squad to pick from, we realise we aren't very good and this is the standard we actually are.
Brownhill could be back , if Bristol Live are right Nagy too. Kalas will have shaken off some rust , last game without Fam. JD and Korey a week closer football. So potentially, we could have most of the squad back for Forest.
Then we will start to see how good/average/poor we are. Maybe a striker for a late Christmas present and the season can start.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As always, thanks @Olé. I thought driving home last night that 'injuries' might feature in your report title today. For me, that second half was when our injury dogged season finally reached crisis point.

By the last 20 mins I had no idea what formation or line up we were supposed to be playing, so it wasn't a surprise that we had no shape and no pattern. But that's maybe not a surprise since we probably had three players out there last night that you'd have said were guaranteed starters at the beginning of the season: Bentley, Weimann and Kalas/Brownhill (counting the last two as one, since as one returns after a long lay off another departs). That's had its benefits, Moore and Massengo getting early chances to prove what they are capable of. But overall we looked like the makeshift side we now are.

I suppose the only consolation is that Massengo got up after that assault on him by two Barnsley players: that could easily have been the end to his season too. And can someone explain how Semenyo gets a red card for that Derby game last season and that challenge last night only warrants a yellow? 

I actually thought Massengo looked stronger , physically, again last night, more like earlier in the season. He was holding players off, holding it up, but the problem he had was, firstly no one giving him options, and second, a ref that was allowing Barnsley players to literally manhandle him off the ball, grab him round the shoulders and pull him off the ball.

I thought Bentley was a giant again last night. The save you mention from that curled shot (why have we yet again allowed an opponent to get that shot in, having conceded three like that recently) but from where I was sat the one a few minutes later when he got down low to the post was Banks like in it's agility and Basso like in the way he moved his feet to perfection. 

Not going to argue with any of those scores, I just felt it was more about the team last night, and we seemed to reach the point where we ceased to cope with the injuries (and suspension - hopefully what Diedhiou brings is  now apparent to some of his many detractors) and that was the disappointment, if not surprise. 

But last night wasn't haloween! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Major Isewater said:

They weren’t great but we made them look good . 
 

They should have won but for Bentley they would have. 
 

 

I agree with the first and know what you mean about the second. But I've always thought it a bit odd to treat goalkeepers as somehow being separate to the rest of the team, Bentley was there to do a job and did it very well, to the point where they shouldn't have won. In that position we were stronger than them. It's a bit like saying we'd have won but for the fact that their goal scorer could hit the net! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, maxjak said:

Those that can,  do........those that cannot, just criticise from afar, in your case literally?   Lets see you write something of similar quality and observation?...........Or are you only capable of glib trolling?

Just expressing my point of view on a post that seemed so long winded. Surely you agree we can express our comments and i might be far away but i have supported city for over 50 years. I’m not ctrisiising at all.  It just looked like someone wrote down a recording of a news paper reporter that got out the wrong side of the bed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, petehinton said:

Totally agree with you on the Bentley point mate. Must be 80% of games now where he’s pretty much kept us in it. Scary to think where we’d be without him. 

Still can’t believe he took Moore off too. 

We would have Maenpaa performing excellently.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don’t want to criticise too much as I really feel the injuries are catching up with us and I think any team in the division would struggle with 6 key absences (including Brownhill) and another key player only just coming back from injury.

BUT it was crushingly predictable that they equalised last night and I don’t really get what either second half substitution achieved.

I think Watkins and Weimann looked as close to the answer up front - for now - as we have so far round but Brownhill’s injury unbalanced us and - for all Rowe’s hard work and the credit he deserves for filling in JD - he offered nowhere near as much in the centre. Pereira looked error prone and Eliasson was great from set pieces but looked like a winger trying to fill in at full back.

I am not despondent - I don’t think there are easy games and I think we will make up for some of the  points we lose against lower teams with unexpected results against rivals and we do seem to be hard to beat. But we need our injured players to come back and perform when they do and we need something else up front in January. My worry is how much ground we will lose by limping through until then.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, petehinton said:

Maenpaa nowhere near his level 

Disagree. Maenpaa barely made a mistake all season, quite a bit better off his line on crosses. Bentley bit better one on ones. Very close between those two.

I think Maenpaa may be the most under appreciated or underrated player I have ever seen at City. Incredible season from him last season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Why we didn’t go 442 last night when Brownhill got injured.

Instead we ended up playing endless players out of position.

 

should of been

Pereria Kalas Williams Moore

Eliasson Rowe Massengo O Dowda 

Watkins Weimann 

 

People in there right positions except for Moore and more compact. 
 

Why oh why did we take off Moore, Bsker cane on and we looked awful defensively and luckily for us Diaby missed a free header after Bsker stood and watched him in Injury time. For a CB Bsker loses so many headers and switches off way to much.

LJ once again tried to be to smart for his own good with the subs. 
 

Just leave the defence alone and do changes up the pitch so we can retain the ball.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, wayne allisons tongues said:

Why we didn’t go 442 last night when Brownhill got injured.

Instead we ended up playing endless players out of position.

 

should of been

Pereria Kalas Williams Moore

Eliasson Rowe Massengo O Dowda 

Watkins Weimann 

 

People in there right positions except for Moore and more compact. 
 

Why oh why did we take off Moore, Bsker cane on and we looked awful defensively and luckily for us Diaby missed a free header after Bsker stood and watched him in Injury time. For a CB Bsker loses so many headers and switches off way to much.

LJ once again tried to be to smart for his own good with the subs. 
 

Just leave the defence alone and do changes up the pitch so we can retain the ball.

Nah Baker is a solid championship defender apparently! (If you ignore all the mistakes he makes) ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Normally agree 100% with your analysis. However, think you’ve been over-generous.

Frankly, we were clueless. Ball retention was abysmal. Shape non-existent.

Bents(8) and Andi (7) were decent, Williams (6) and Taylor-Moore (6) on par. The remainder were woeful (4 at best).

 

Yes, we were patched-up, but we were up against a young, naive Barnsley side. From the outset, we had the chance to dominate and impose ourselves - they looked nervous and hesitant . We didn’t, we were wasteful and disorganised. We totally fluffed our lines both on and off the pitch. 

Those substitutions! What were we doing? The defence was ok - the central three, seemingly, the only players who looked like they knew each other. What we needed was some experience and presence in midfield and someone with a bit of nouse upfront. Not difficult. Palmer and Rodri. 

Sorry. It was awful. Simply not good enough. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...