(FM14) Drink up thee cider!!!

Bristol City vs Tottenham - 14th January 2017
3-2
Reus 8.9 rating
Rodrigo Gomez 10, 44 mins
Buitrago 40 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy named three changes to his side that lost and underperformed against Spurs North London rivals Arsenal 3 days ago. Chris Smalling replaced the suspended Alvarez Balanta, Rodrigo Gomez was in for the injured Bogado and Jese came in for Berardi. New Tottenham manager Carlo Ancellotti only had Pedro Obiang absent through injury.
The two teams lined up as follows:

It was a game of two halves at Ashton Gate this afternoon as City won the first half easily but lost the second. MOTM Marco Reus assisted Rodrigo Gomez with two left wing crosses, and Jese tee'd up Mario Buitrago to make the score 3-0 at half time. In the 2nd half substitute Roberto Soldado scored a brace but City held on to move back to 4th spot in the league as Arsenal drew at home to Everton. Also, Tom Ince came of the bench in the 2nd half to play his 100th game for Bristol City.



Man City bought Victor Wanyama from Southampton for a fee of 17.5 million pounds

Bristol City vs Birmingham - 21st January 2017
3-0
Ince 8.1 rating
Rodrigo Gomez 20 mins
Ince 34 mins
Berardi 74 mins



Manager's review
It was a welcomed relief for Bristol City manager Andrew Booy as Birmingham beat Man Utd in the 3rd round replay in midweek giving City a much easier 4th round tie. Booy used this opportunity to rest his starting 11 (all apart from Emre Can and Eder Alvarez Balanta). Birmingham included former City player Scott Wagstaff in their side but were without key players Tom Adeyemi (at Africa cup of Nations), Paul Caddis, Jamie Vardy and Dorian Dervite (all injured).
The two teams lined up as follows:

Birmingham's midweek replay at Old Trafford went to extra time and penalties so a fresh and young Bristol City side put the midlanders to the sword with an easy victory. Rodrigo Gomez, MOTM Tom Ince and Domenico Berardi all scored for the hosts. City have now set up a home tie with Man City in the FA Cup 5th Round.

Everton vs Bristol City - 24th January 2017
3-0
Alvarez Balanta 8.5 rating
Jese 8 mins
Alvarez Balanta 34 mins
Allione pen 53 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy was able to name his strongest possible starting 11 for the 1st time in months as Agustin Allione was back from injury and everybody was rested in the previous FA Cup fixture. Everton's star player Ross Barkley was critically missing for the hosts and Also Jeremain Lens (injury) and Bakary Kone (international duty) were unavailable.
The two teams lined up as follows:


It was a comfortable win for City's strongest possible 11, which lines up as follows:

City dominated the possession and had 25 shots to Everton's 4 in the match. This match arguably shows the gap between the top five teams in the Premier League and everyone else at present as Everton were 6th going into this match. Goals from Jese, Eder Alvarez Balanta and an Allione penalty sealed a 2nd 3-0 win for Andrew Booy in a row.

Bristol City vs Liverpool - 28th January 2017
3-0
Buitrago 8.9 rating
Lucas Evangelista 18 mins
Buitrago 35, 38 mins



Manager's review
City manager Andrew Booy named the same side that beat Liverpool's Merseyside rivals Everton in the previous match. Liverpool named ex City player Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik (who joined Liverpool for 5.5 million in the summer) in their starting 11. Star man Luis Suarez was in need of a rest but played and Lucas Leiva was injured.
The two teams lined up as follows:

City won another match convincingly against 6th place Liverpool. Lucas Evangelista opening the scoring with a well timed header from a Agustin Allione cross. The Brazilian has been relishing playing in an attacking advanced playmaker role in recent weeks. Mario Buitrago then bundled in a goal line melee to make the score 2-0 before getting his 2nd goal from another Allione cross before half time. City took their foot of the gas in the 2nd period and won the game comfortably 3-0.

January 2017 - THE REVIEW

Fixtures

CITY vs Newcastle - 2nd January 2017 3-1
Morecambe vs CITY - 7th January 2017 5-0 FA Cup 3rd Round
Arsenal vs CITY - 11th January 2017 2-3
CITY vs Tottenham - 14th January 2017 3-2
CITY vs Birmingham - 21st January 2017 3-0 FA Cup 4th Round
Everton vs CITY - 24th January 2017 3-0
CITY vs Liverpool - 28th January 2017 3-0



Monthly Awards

Best Player - Marc-Andre ter Stegen - average rating 7.66

The City number one was in fine form this month and was very unlucky not to win the Premier League player of the month award.

Highly commended
Lucas Evangelista - average rating 7.52
Playing in a more advanced midfield role the Brazilian has added goals and assists to his game this month with 2 of each to his name.
Rodrigo Gomez - average rating 7.46
The Argentinian squad player gets a mention this month as he has filled in at both CM and RM when required and chipped in 3 goals in an impressive month.

City player wins Young Player of Month award AGAIN!!!!


Coming Up.......





January Window slams shut

Bristol City made no changes to their squad at the end of this transfer window as they had done their business early with the signing of Marco Reus from Dortmund at the start of the month. A summary of all the window transfers is below:

Man City vs Bristol City - 4th February 2017
1-1
Alvarez Balanta 8.1 rating
Alvarez Balanta 68 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy made no changes to his side. Eder Alvarez Balanta was a little tired from an international trip to Colombia in midweek but he started. Roberto Mancini's side have been playing well and only had reserve player Fernandinho out injured.
The two teams lined up as follows:

This was a quite even game at The City of Manchester Stadium. The hosts took the lead after some sloppy defending from an early freekick allowed Juan Cuadrado in at the near post to score. Then both teams had chances, in particular Lucas Evangelista struck the post twice for Bristol City. The visitors did get their equaliser in the end from a Marco Reus corner which MOTM Eder Alvarez Balanta scored at the near post. City manager Andrew Booy almost rested the Colombian international so was pleased that his decision to play the big centre back was justified!!



City add to their staff roster

Bristol City added two new members of the staff to the club this week. Scout Roberto Gemmi joins from Italian side Verona and coach Steve Weaver joins from Wolves. Both men were out of contract at the end of this season so their signings were relatively cheap in terms of compensation packages.




Gemmi will help Chief Scout Mauro Pederzoli in identifying possible new recruits for Andrew Booy, and Weaver has perfect knowledge of judging player abilities so will help Booy in team selections.

Bristol City vs Man City - 12th February 2017
2-1
ter Stegen 8.4 rating
Denswil 41 mins
Jese 60 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy made one change to his side as Martin Kaspar replaced Clyne at RB. The 17 year old seems to have progressed enough in recent months to have displaced Nathaniel Clyne from Andrew Booy's best starting 11. Man City were without the cup-tied Victor Wanyama and the injured Stevan Jovetic, Fernandinho and Jack Rodwell.
The two teams lined up as follows:

This was the 2nd matchup between Roberto Mancini and Andrew Booy in 2 weeks and this time the City in red prevailed!! Marco Reus got his 6th assist in his first 7 matches for Bristol City from a corner routine that found Stefano Denswil unmarked at the back post. Then Jese got his 9th goal of the season with a neat near post finish on 60 minutes. Man City captain Vincent Kompany pulled one back for the visitors but the Robins held on to book a Quarter Final fixture against Chelsea.

Bristol City vs Dortmund - 15th February 2017
2-2
Buitrago 74 mins
Smalling 90+2 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy named two changes to his side as Nathaniel Clyne replaced Martin Kaspar and Tom Ince came in for Marco Reus, who was unable to face his former club after playing for them in the group stages earlier in the competition. Dortmund were without three of their January transfer window purchases, Lazar Markovic (injured) and Mario Mandzukic and Jores Okore (ineligible).
The two teams lined up as follows:

This was a tight and nervy game for City, who arguably felt the nerves on one of the biggest games ever played at Ashton Gate. Both sides were relatively even until Dortmund star man and MOTM Henrikh Mkhitaryan opened the scoring just before the break. In the 2nd half City were patient and equalised through top scorer Mario Buitrago who headed home a Tom Ince cross. Then with only 3 minutes to go Dortmund looked to have won the game through Ji Dong-Won only for substitute Chris Smalling to score from fellow substitute Bogado's corner deep into injury time. It was Smalling's 1st goal for the club and it gave City some slight hope of getting a positive result in Germany in a few weeks time. Bristol City did pick up a lot of yellow cards in the game and as a result Mario Buitrago, Eder Alvarez Balanta and Emre Can will all miss the 2nd leg.

Q.P.R. vs Bristol City - 18th February 2017
3-2
Buitrago 8.8 rating
Buitrago 41, 52 mins
Jese 60 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy recalled Martin Kaspar and Marco Reus to his starting 11 for Clyne and Ince therefore naming his strongest possible lineup. QPR had Danny Ings, Ryan Shotton and Esteban Granero missing through injury.
The two teams lined up as follows:

City played well and went into a comfortable 3-0 lead. Mario Buitrago scored a glancing header from a Marco Reus left wing cross and then got his 2nd from a Lucas Evangelista through ball. Jese also scored for City before Samba Diakite and Junior Hoilett made it a nervous last 10 minutes for Andrew Booy. The City captain now has 20 league goals for the season and is the favourite to pick up the Golden Boot award as he is 4 goals ahead of his nearest rivals. It was also Buitrago's 8th MOTM performance meaning he has set a new club record for awards in a season with still plenty of games to go!!

It was also a historic day for Chelsea as they lost their 1st Premier League game of the season and their 1st in 40 matches tracking back to January 16th 2016!!! They are on course to win the league easily for the 2nd season in a row and look unstoppable right now!!

Derby vs Bristol City - 22nd February 2017
1-2
Lucas Evangelista 2 mins
Allione 34 mins
Allione 48 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy made no changes to his side for this one. Derby were without Mehdi Abeid, Mark O’Brien and Alex Baptiste through injury.
The two teams lined up as follows:

It was a bad day at the office for Andrew Booy and particularly his right wing star Agustin Allione. Things started well for City and last years Premier League player of the year as he assisted Lucas Evangelista to opening the scoring in the first 2 minutes. Then the horror story began, first Allione scored an embarrassing own goal from a Derby corner then unbelievably when the winger was given the chance to make amends in the 2nd half from the penalty spot his tame shot was saved!!! Then as Booy threw the kitchen sink at County they got a goal on the break through Jeff Hendrick to seal an undeserved victory.

Bristol City vs Man Utd - 25th February 2017
1-1
Alvarez Balanta 38 mins
Reus 25 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy named no changes to his side for the visit of Man Utd. The Red Devils had Juan Mata out through a long-term injury. Ex City player Michael Bradley lined up for Man Utd but ex Utd player Nick Powell was still out for Bristol City so was denied the chance to play for his old club. It was also centre back Stefano Denswil's landmark 100th game for the side.
The two teams lined up as follows:

It was a close game at Ashton Gate which arguably Bristol City had the slight advantage. It wasn't a good start for Andrew Booy as left winger and record signing Marco Reus went down after tearing his calf muscle running after a lose ball. City opened the scoring as substitute Tom Ince setup Eder Alvarez Balanta with a nice ball in the box after a short freekick routine. Then a moment of genius from United's Adnan Januzaj levelled the game as the winger seized on an Emre Can lose pass to run through on goal and sublimely chip Ter Stegen in the City goal. The goal came 2nd in the Premier League goal of the month award. City have now dropped 4 points from the last 6 and relinquished control of the 4th Champions League qualifying spot to Arsenal.

February 2017 - THE REVIEW

Fixtures

Man City vs CITY - 4th February 2017 1-1
CITY vs Man City- 12th February 2017 2-1 FA Cup 5th Round
CITY vs Dortmund- 15th February 2017 2-2 Champions League 1st Knockout Rd Leg 1
Q.P.R vs CITY - 18th February 2017 3-2
Derby vs CITY - 22nd February 2017 1-2
CITY vs Man Utd - 25th February 2017 1-1



Monthly Awards

Best Player - Lucas Evangelista - average rating 7.34
The advanced playmaker contributed 1 goals and 1 assist this month and is looking better and better in his more advanced playmaker position.

Highly commended
Marc-Andre ter Stegen - average rating 7.24
The City keeper kept his team in a few games this month and without him an average month would have been a lot worse.
Marco Reus - average rating 7.20
Contributed 3 assists this month before an injury has confirmed that he will be out for the remainder of the season, a bitter blow to Andrew Booy.


Coming Up.......





Spurs beat Man City to win the Capital One Cup

Bristol City vs Chelsea - 4th March 2017
4-0
Allione 9.3 rating
Alvarez Balanta 2 mins
Jese 18 mins
Allione 45+1 mins
Smalling 75 mins



Manager's review
Andrew Booy resisted the urge to rest players for Tuesday's trip to Germany in the Champions League. Instead only Tom Ince came in for the injured Marco Reus. In comparison Chelsea manager surprisingly named a weaker lineup than expected for this FA Cup quarter final, with key players Eden Hazard and Willian only on the bench. Kurt Zouma was the only injury concern for Chelsea.
The two teams lined up as follows:

Bristol City destroyed a mostly 2nd string Chelsea side who perhaps are more concerned with confirming their 2nd Premier League crown in two years. Eder Alvarez Balanta opened the scoring from a Allione corner in only the 2nd minute. Then Jese found space in the box to double the lead from a Lucas Evangelista ball. Just before the break MOTM Agustin Allione seized on poor defending to grab a goal and make it 3-0 at half time. Substitute Chris Smalling added a 4th for City from a Tom Ince flick on from a freekick. Bristol City are now into the FA Cup Semi Finals for the third year in succession!!!!

Dortmund vs Bristol City - 7th March 2017
3-1 (win 5-3 on aggregate)
Berardi 9.6 rating
Berardi 32, 36, 61 mins



Manager's review
Bristol City had three players out through suspension so Chris Smalling, Rodrigo Gomez and Domenico Berardi came in for Alvarez Balanta, Can and Buitrago. Dortmund had a full strength squad to choose from.
The two teams lined up as follows:

It was a magical evening for the travelling Bristol faithful as they witnessed a wonderful victory in front of 62,800 Dortmund fans. In one of Andrew Booy's biggest achievements so far in his career his team beat the German 2nd place side to book Bristol City a tie in the Champions League Quarter Finals against last years winners Barcelona!!!!. Domenico Berardi was the star man for City scoring a hat trick, first he slotted home a Tom Ince cross, then he combined passes with Jese to get his 2nd, before completing his hat trick with a freekick in the 2nd half. The striker now has 20 goals for the season and has only actually started 14 games!!!

Bristol City vs Wigan - 11th March 2017
4-0
Buitrago 9.5 rating
Buitrago 10, 26 mins
Ince 48 mins
Alvaro 85 mins



Manager's review
With half an eye on the difficult match at home to Chelsea in 3 days time Andrew Booy decided to rotate the pack a little in this easier game against lowly Wigan. Eder Alvarez Balanta, Emre Can, Mario Buitrago, Nathaniel Clyne and Esteban Gabriel Jesus Bogado came in for Alex Sandro, Rodrigo Gomez, Jese, Kaspar and Allione. Wigan were missing Curro, Fredrik Semb, Chris McCann and Eric Lichaj through injury.
The two teams lined up as follows:

City continued there recent good form with a routine win here to keep the pressure on 4th place Arsenal (who also won). MOTM Mario Buitrago scored a brace early on, first a header from a Ince cross then smashing in a rebound after his own shot was saved. Buitrago then turned provider in the 2nd half playing through Tom Ince to smash into the bottom corner. Then youngster Alvaro came off the bench to score his 1st league goal for Bristol City, and what a goal it was smashing in a volley from outside the box after fellow sub Rodrigo Gomez tee'd him up with a cushioned header.



Bristol City's youth system produces a 'Mint' player

Following the Wigan came Bristol City's annual youth intake scheme unearthed a potential world class striker, 15 year old Alex Mint. The Bristolian has gone straight into Andrew Booy's U21 development squad and time will tell if the local boy will ever don his boyhood club shirt.