(FM14) Drink up thee cider!!!

Bristol City vs Carlisle - 10th August 2013
4-0
De Lanlay
Gillett 7 mins
Bolado 12 mins
Strandberg 30 mins
El Abd 43 mins
De Lanlay 75, 77 mins



Manager's review
What a performance! Andrew Booy made three changes to the starting 11 by bringing in new signings Trebel, De Lanlay and Strandberg for Reid, Wagstaff and Fontaine. These changes were instrumental as these three were the best players on the park all getting a match rating of over 9.10. Trebel ran the middle of the park supported by Reid (came on for injured Gillett after 7 mins) and chipped in with two assists. De Lanlay covered lots of yards and scored two fantastic goals from the right wing. Strandberg marshalled the defence after El Abd's second yellow card just before half time and also got a goal on his debut. Ivan Bolado also scored his first goal of the campaign and lead the line alone as Baldock was sacrificed for Fontaine after El Abd's sending off. City were 2-0 up at the time of the captains second booking but successfully operated a counter attack approach for the second 45 and De Lanlay scored 2 further goals on the break. Great result moved City up to 8th in the league and only downside is El Abd's suspension for trip to top of the table Walsall next week and the news that Gillett's sprained ankle will keep him out for next 5-6 weeks. Joe Bryan also picked up injury in mid-week U21 fixture and will be out for 4 weeks adding to City's mounting injury list.

Walsall vs Bristol City - 17th August 2013
3-2
Emmanuel-Thomas
Baldock 36 mins
Bolado 83 mins
Williams 87 mins



Manager's review
Great result against a Walsall team that had won their first 3 matches of the season but it didn't come easily! Booy didn't want to mess with the team after the great result last week so Reid came in for injured Gillett and Fontaine for suspended El Abd. City dominated proceedings for first 75 minutes and lead through great headed goal from Sam Baldock (assisted by great wing play by MOTM Emmanuel-Thomas, who was a threat all afternoon). However the appearance of Westcarr from the bench for Walsall meant a sloppy City conceded 2 goals in 5 mins and were starring defeat in the face. However Booy made a triple substitution with 10 mins remaining and brought on Williams, Moloney and Pack for fresh legs. This decision and the fact Booy switched to a 3-5-2 attacking formation resulted in City getting two goals in the final 10 mins. Bolado and Williams both scored to snatch victory for the Robins in a match that came to life in final 15 mins.

Great Result against Walsall, i was bristol city under 14's about 14 years ago have always kept an interest ever since good luck my friend

Bristol City vs Tranmere - 24th August 2013
3-1
De Lanlay
Emmanuel-Thomas 21 mins
Baldock 68 mins
De Lanlay 70 mins



Manager's review
Booy made only one change to the good win at Walsall with captain El Abd returning from suspension replacing Fontaine. Derrick Williams was unlucky not to start after his super-sub performance against Walsall but the leadership of El Abd could not be left out. Tranmere came with a defensive 4-5-1 formation and were time-wasting from the off. However a patient City kept plugging away and three goals from Emmanuel-Thomas (his 1st of campaign), Baldock and De Lanlay secured a comfortable win for the Robins. De Lanlay picked up his second MOTM award and his stats now read 3 goals, 2 assists and 2 MOTM awards from 4 starts this campaign. The team in general are all progressing well and training performances have also been excellent. Bring on Port Vale next week!

Bristol City vs Port Vale - 31st August 2013
2-0
Bolado
Emmanuel-Thomas 45+1 mins
Bolado 52 mins



Manager's review
Booy named exactly the same starting line-up as against Tranmere the week prior and City easily extended their winning run to 4 consecutive games. Bolado picked up the MOTM award with a goal and an assist for Emmanuel-Thomas (his 2nd in 2 games) and now has 3 goals in the league. City finished the month on top of the table after this win and Booy goes into the end of the transfer window with a strong looking squad who just keep on winning!!!

August 2013 - THE REVIEW

Fixtures

Notts County vs CITY - 3rd August 2013 1-3
Stevenage vs CITY - 6th August 2013 0-3 Capital One Cup
CITY vs Carlisle - 10th August 2013 4-0
Walsall vs CITY - 17th August 2013 3-2
CITY vs Tranmere - 24th August 2013 3-1
CITY vs Port Vale - 31st August 2013 2-0

Monthly Awards

Best Player - Yann-Erik de Lanlay

The young Norwegian right winger has had a fantastic start to the season after signing from Viking in the summer. De Lanlay contributed 3 goals, 2 assists and 2 MOTM awards as Bristol City started slowly but climbed to top of the League 1 table. De Lanlay also won the young player of the month award for League One and came 2nd in the player of the month award thanks to an average rating of 7.56 over 5 matches. City manager Andrew Booy also was voted 2nd in the manager of the month award.

Highly commended
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas - average rating 7.46
Emmanuel-Thomas has adapted to the left wing role Booy has asked him to play with aplomb. He has played every minute for the Robins scoring 2, assisting 3 and getting one MOTM award.
Stefan Strandberg - average rating 7.44
Signed after the first two matches of the season due to the teams poor defensive start Strandberg immediately made his mark and is yet to taste defeat in a City shirt. He scored on his debut and has been solid at the back.

League Table

City loan Man United's Keane

It was thought that Andrew Booy did not intend to be active on transfer deadline day but one offer was simply too good to resist. Bristol City have signed young central defender Michael Keane from Manchester United on season-long loan.





Keane is highly rated at Old Trafford but has yet to make a first-team league appearance for them. He has enjoyed successful loans at Championship sides Leicester, Derby and Blackburn so he should excel at League One level. The terms of Keane's loan deal mean that Bristol City are paying absolutely nothing towards his wages for the duration of the season. It is thought that Keane will play in central defence for City starting 11 and Strandberg will play will central midfield with Trebel. Keane can also play at right-back if required.

Bristol City's other deadline day deal sees 16 year old French striker David Faupala join on a Free Transfer. Faupala's first team game time will be sparse this season but he is placed in the first-team squad as the 4th choice FC. He is a signing for the future with a potential rating of .

A summary of the transfer window signings can be seen below:

Premiership


League One

Bristol City vs Newport Co - 4th September 2013
3-0
Bolado
Bolado 13, 57, 66 mins



Manager's review
Booy made only one change to the starting 11 which was enforced. Player of Month for August, De Lanlay was on international duty for Norway U21 so was unavailable. This meant Keane starting his first game since signing from Manchester United. He joined El Abd at centre back pushing Strandberg into central midfield with Reid and moving Trebel to wide right midfielder in place of De Lanlay. City started September as they had left August with thoroughly comprehensive result where they dominated possession and had 7 clearcut chances. Bolado scored a perfect hat-trick and could have had more like the rest of the City team. Now there is a 10 day rest for the international break period before a more challenging game against Sheff Utd in the league.

In other news City have signed American Defensive coach Eric Lukin on a short-term deal until the end of the season. This has meant U18 coach David Horseman's contract which was due to expire in the summer has been mutually terminated early.

Bristol City vs Sheff Utd - 14th September 2013
2-0
Baldock
Baldock 10, 15 mins



Manager's review
Booy made one change to the starting line-up as De Lanlay was now available again so he came straight back in on the right wing. Trebel moved back to his favoured central midfield role and Bobby Reid was relegated to the bench. City came out of the blocks firing and Baldock scored 2 goals in the first 15 mins (one of which was a solo effort which could be contender for goal of the month). The team then took it easy towards the end of the match, especially when United's Neill Collins received his 2nd card on 69 mins, as they had the important trip to Swindon to consider in 3 days time. This result meant that Hansen and the City defence has not conceded for 321 mins. On another note some of the squad had a successful international break prior to this match. Adam El Abd got his 1st goal for Egypt after being reconsidered for their squad. Stefan Strandberg won his 1st international cap for Norway. And finally, Ivan Bolado fresh from his Paint Trophy hat-trick got his 1st goal for Equatorial Guinea on his 8th cap.

Great story mate.
Run little run you are on....love the Norwegian invasion

Swindon vs Bristol City - 17th September 2013
1-0
Bolado 22 mins



Manager's review
Booy made one change to the starting 11 as De Lanlay was tired from the weekend win and needed a rest so Bobby Reid came in to central midfield and Trebel moved to the right wing. This was the young manager's first taste of a local derby and the City squad travelled to the County Ground in excellent spirits. Ivan Bolado got his 7th goal in all competitions this season from a good assist on the right by Karleigh Osbourne. However this game highlighted how strong Bristol City have been at the back in recent weeks and any one of the back 5 could of received the MOTM award (especially Hansen who had a rating of 7.4). Incredibly though Darren Ward the Swindon defender who had the same rating as Hansen was given the honour.......strange decision.

Arsenal and Bristol City agree to affiliation



Andrew Booy approached his Bristol City board with the idea of finding a possible parent club for the Robins. After City's incredible start to the season its is believed that the hierarchy at Arsenal see Booy's potential and have set-up a partnership in which players can be loaned to Bristol City for experience and match time. If a player is loaned then Arsenal pay the entirety of their wages and they can be recalled at any time, Bristol City would be under no obligation to play the loanee.
Financially it is believed to really benefit Bristol City as they receive an annual fee of 100,000 from Arsenal and the Gunners must play a pre-season friendly at Ashton Gate each year with all the gate receipts being retained by the feeder club, Bristol City. Interestingly it seemed that Bristol City turned down a very similar offer from Manchester United possibly because of Booy's personal love of the London-based club who he followed as a child.

Shrewsbury vs Bristol City - 21st September 2013
2-1
Baldock
Baldock 37, 50 mins
Baldock 71 mins
Cunningham 90+4 mins



Manager's review
Bristol City made one change to the line-up that defeated rivals Swindon Town on Tuesday night. De Lanlay was fit and he came back in on the right wing, Trebel moved back to central midfield and Bobby Reid went to the bench. The strike force of Bolado and Baldock were again outstanding for City as Bolado assisted both Baldock's goals meaning that both have started all 10 games this season and have 7 goals each in those games with two MOTM awards a piece as well. City's toughest game of the season is next Sunday as they travel to Coventry who have started the season strongly and already are out of the relegation zone after their initial 10 point deduction at the season kick-off. Andrew Booy and the City fans had their hearts in their mouths as both Baldock and Cunningham picked up injuries against Shrewsbury but it is thought that both should recover in time for next weeks match at the Sixfields Stadium.

Andrew Booy adds Lucassen to his staff

The Bristol City manager has added the fourth member to his increasing back room team since his arrival in the summer with the signing of Dutchmen Marcel Lucassen who was without a job since leaving his position as assistant manager at German side Hoffenheim in 2011.



Lucassen is a quality technique coach and after the other signings of Steve Black, Ulf Kirsten and Eric Lukin the City coaching staff are looking very qualified. Thanks has to be given to Andrew Booy's board as they agreed to facilitate the opening of a new coaching position so that Lucassen could be brought in.

The Bristol City first-team coaching staff now look as follows:

Strength - Steve Black -
Aerobic - Steve Black -
Tactics - John Pemberton -
Ball Control - Marcel Lucassen -
Defending - Eric Lukin -
Attacking - Ulf Kirsten -
Shooting - Mark O'Connor -
GK Shot Stopping - Lee Kendall -
GK Handling - Lee Kendall -

Coventry vs Bristol City - 29th September 2013
3-1
Osborne
Situ 48 mins
Baldock 53 mins
Keane 62 mins



Manager's review
Booy had the luxury of naming his strongest starting 11 for the 2nd game in a row as Baldock and Cunningham both recovered from the injuries that forced them off against Shrewsbury. Coventry unluckily picked up injuries to two key players in the build-up to this game (Forward Delfouneso and Midfielder Fleck) and the Robins took full advantage and dominated from the off. Coventry couldn't muster a single shot on goal until after City had gone 3-0 up. Emmanuel-Thomas forced Situ to concede an own-goal after half-time with a nice left-wing cross. Baldock then made things worse for the poor Situ by robbing him of possession in his own area and smashing in his 8th league goal of the campaign. Finally Michael Keane got his first goal for the club as Bristol City's pre-match attacking set-piece preparations paid off as the Manchester Utd loanee got on the end of a Trebel free-kick (his 5th assist of season). Prior to the game Karleigh Osborne was tasked with keeping Coventry star-man Frank Moussa quiet on the left wing and the City right-back had an outstanding match getting the MOTM award with a rating of 7.9. This is now 9 matches won in a row for Andrew Booy and his City team!!