Every word Gerhard Struber said on Blues win, Armstrong example, Bristol City standard and more

Bristol Live brings you a full transcript of everything Bristol City’s Gerhard Struber said in his post-Birmingham City press conferenceBristol City boss Gerhard Struber has had a positive start to life at Bristol City(Image: Photo by David Watts/MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

Bristol City stretched their winning run after the October international break to three matches and secured their third home league win of the campaign in a professional fashion, as they got the better of Birmingham City.

Sinclair Armstrong’s first goal of the season and some inspired defending from the Robins’ backline proved to be enough for Gerhard Struber’s side to claim all three points against Chris Davies’ Blues on Saturday afternoon, as the Reds ran out 1-0 winners at Ashton Gate.

Having been played behind Birmingham’s backline just a matter of minutes before the break, Armstrong managed to race ahead of his marker before breaking into the penalty area. The Ireland international opened up his body and calmly slotted a right-footed strike beyond James Beadle and into the bottom right corner to kickstart the celebrations inside BS3.

What followed in the second half was a display which felt more like an away side attempting to hold onto a lead rather than that of a home team. The Reds sat deep and absorbed plenty of pressure from Blues and ultimately managed to see the win out, without surrendering much in the way of scoring chances.

Saturday’s win leaves City sitting fourth in the Championship after 12 matches, one place and a single point ahead of Stoke City, who the Reds face at the Bet365 Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Before attention turns to the weekend’s trip to the Potteries, however, here is a full transcript of everything Struber said to the print media after the Robins’ win over Birmingham City…

That was a victory for hard work, commitment, and great defensive organisation. You must be very proud of all that today?

Yeah, I would say we are, of course, super happy with this week. Three games, nine points, and every game shows us a little bit of a different story and a different picture. Today was, of course we can see not always sexy football especially in the second half, it was not the football where I like it. But in the end, I would say it was a really good defending togetherness from our players, where we brought in the end, the points home.

I would say the whole group was really connected and invested a lot in this direction to be very close to our net and realise the one or other transition moment. We could see today how Sinclair Armstrong did it. I think this was a typical way in a shape like a 5-3-2 that you jumped out, then come in the transition moment.

This was also a really good moment, how we can see with the pace that Sinclair has, and also how we come out of the back, and then he was in really good balance in front of the goal. It was really, really good to see also how we did it today. So, it was a different picture but also very successful in the end.

We’ve seen Sinclair since he’s been here, almost flatter to deceive a bit. He’s got so much pace and power, but not always the end product. What have you worked on with him to make him more of a complete player?

I can tell you exactly this moment. This moment that he has today, you can frame it, and we train exactly that. We let him run with the pace, with a bigger distance many, many times in the training to our goal and the finishing, many, many finishing moments. I think when you ask him, he will remember the last two weeks in the training, this was individual training moments and today, he has the reward for that.

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Also, his link up play, his touch, and holding it up.

Yes, in more directions, he was very helpful for us. How he deals with our game, he was super connected, his link-up play was on a really good level, he brings us always out of the pressure zone, and then we have with him on the ball on the far side, good moments to come in and overload.

So it was, I would say, a very difficult game, what we expected and a very tight game with the result, but in the end, we defended our box on a really high level, and I could not remember that they had in the end such big chances with all the possession that they had.

I think I can remember one time, when they shot across goal and over the crossbar but not much more and I think we can see also, we can create in this frame and with this picture, a successful game.

It’s not always just the back four, is it, when you’re defending? You let Birmingham play in front of you, but obviously, it wasn’t the plan to do that much defending in the second half. Why do you think you were forced back so much?

Yeah, I think we give the boys in the half time and we know we rotate not so much but we can see also especially [in] our eights, that [it was] the third game in a row I would say in the frame of freshness we could see they go down a little bit and then you go a little bit more backwards and you save in the end always the dangerous space.

I would say in this direction, the connection was so good between the centre-backs, the sixes and the wing-backs, and how this works together makes it for them really, really difficult. This is sometimes the world also how we have to bring points home in back-to-back games so close, then it can be also look a setting in this way.

Scott Twine picked up a booking for dissent. What is your attitude to those sorts of yellow cards, where they’re pretty unnecessary and could lead to suspension later?

I think, of course, we shouldn’t lose energy in this direction with the referee or something. We need every single player to be connected with our mission on the way of football, but I understand also my boys a little bit with the one or other decision from the referee. But we should be very focused and concentrated in our style, we shouldn’t get too many yellows in this direction.

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Well, I thought it was a wonderful performance and a committed performance. Well done.

I think again, we are very, very happy [with] how we committed together. How the boys did it today on this way was really good to see and bring us points. This is, in the end – in the back-to-back game rhythm – very, very good to see.

Just on the commitment to the group, I wondered how that compares to other teams you’ve managed?

I think this is, of course, here on a really high level. I was always the lucky coach, I must say; I always have teams where our togetherness was always on a really, really good level. But what I can see here is that we have many, many players who are together for a longer time and we can see the connection between the players is also on a really good level.

This is, I would say, a big, big relationship between the players and also me and my coaching staff. I would say the whole thing is very healthy and supports in the end the energy and I think this is something that is so important in this league, that you have next to a good match plan, tactical settings, you have of course a really good relationship and also big trust and belief in our setting, in our workflow and I think in this direction the boys are very, very happy how we deal.

Of course, the football identity that we want to play fits the players and always when you have in the end many, many players, that have a good feeling in this idea that we play – trust is always on a better level, belief is always on a really good level, and this supports the whole system with a really good dynamic at the moment.

On a personal level, you must be delighted for Sinclair. You can see how much that goal meant to him.

Very, very blessed about him. How he deals in difficult weeks without game time; he was always ready in the training. Also for individual sessions, always ready, and now he has the reward. Sometimes, you need the long breath before you earn something, and I would say this is the first step; it’s not more. We need him, the next few months on this level, and not that is like a shooting star or something.

We have to grow and grow in a better way. Today, he has a really good impact.

Sinclair Armstrong scores Bristol City’s only goal in their 1-0 win over Birmingham City(Image: Photo by Rogan/Bristol City)

How much can that serve as a bit of an example for other players? Like you said, he’s had to wait, but then he’s taken his chance and put himself in contention.

Yes, exactly. That’s the way. Also, I would say in every league, but especially in the Championship, with so many games, we need the roster. We need every single player always to be ready and with good training sessions in the end.

Also with good moments in game time, your self-confidence goes up and I think in this way, for every single player this is important and yeah, Sincs is a little bit the role model at the moment in this way.

I think if we asked you a week ago, I’m pretty sure you’d have been very happy with three wins from these three games. Has that surprised you at all, just how well you’ve performed in this block?

Yeah, I am very, very happy that we have maximised everything result-wise and also that we showed in the games different settings, different faces as to how we can deal with different opponents with different styles, and the boys did it on a really good level.

This is, of course, also for me super good to see how mature this team is to realise that and everything that you give them on the hand, they take it and they can execute it. I think in this way I’m very, very happy.

Are you quite happy to have a blank midweek now, though, after so many games in a row?

Yeah, I think this is also something where we can come a little bit down and prepare our typical game against our next big opponent. Of course, we have, against them, fresh legs, fresh brains, and this helps.

Olly Thomas got his debut today. What have you seen in him, because I think he’s someone we saw in and around the first team a few years ago?

I think he’s a very interesting player. He has also a lot of pace and is a highly dynamic player. He was also, I think, out for a long time with a big injury.

He came back, he trained with the Under-21s, and I saw him [play] only one game with the Under-21s against Bournemouth, and I was very delighted about that – how he dealt in the box, how he came in good forward runs – I could see this could be a really good fit for our style also.

Today, the game showed me that his strength could help us in the end. It was not so long game time, but he deserved it. He’s a really good talent and we believe in him.

Olly Thomas made his Bristol City debut against Birmingham City(Image: Rogan/ Bristol City)

On Ross coming off at half-time, was that an injury or was that just rotation?

No no, it was only rotation. It was nothing. Ross is fit.

Finally, on Emil, how is he, and are you expecting to have him back available next week?

Yes. Yes, this is the clear plan. I would say that also when we bring him on the field today, maybe he could have played, but in the end, this would be a super high risk, but I don’t like this. In this direction, where we are at the moment in the league timeline, it was not necessary to go in, in a risky moment.

I hope with all that I hear from my medical department, he is ready against Stoke. He needs a different load plan over the next week, but in the end, he is ready against Stoke.

What was the problem, Gerhard?

He felt a little bit the hamstring.

The other night, you described Scott Twine as a free-kick monster. How would you describe Sinclair Armstrong in a few words?

I think, of course, the biggest power that Sinclair has is in transition and in this direction, for every opponent, I would say he has a knife in the hand and can cut everything with his power and his timing. At the moment, to be also in high dynamic moments with the ball under control, I think this is something that we changed in the last few months.

I can see also many, many games from him in the last season when he came in good forward runs, but in the end, the finishing was not clean, and also the one or other touch was not always really good. But today, we can see he was clean, he was clear, he was reliable, and in the end, a monster for them, how they can deal.

I would say if I were a centre back and I must play against Sinclair Armstrong, I would maybe [need someone to] call the mother in the end. [I’d be] so afraid of that.

Can you give us a bit of an insight into what you said to him at the final whistle or after his goal?

Not so much. I congratulated him for the performance, but on the same time, we should not forget he scored a goal in transition. Yes, we expect this also. When you have, in the end, a quality in this direction, then we cannot always highlight everything.

We are happy for him, of course, and I am super happy with how he trained the last few weeks and how he did it today, but he scored one goal, and we have 11 rounds behind us. So the reality is, he’s on a really good way, the trend is sexy, but do it again, and when we speak in the next few weeks about Sinclair Armstrong and he scores again and he comes in moments like that, then he’s in the next flight level – altitude you call it.

You signed Neto Borges on loan from Middlesbrough in the summer, and we’ve been very impressed by his recent performances. Is there a possibility that you would look to extend the loan deal into a permanent move either in January or the summer transfer window?

I’m very, very happy with Neto, and, of course, we want to try in this way, but we have not all the power. So of course, he’s a player for Middlesbrough. But I like him on a really high level, not only player-wise. He’s a really good boy for the dressing room, a funny guy from Brazil, always with some jokes, and I think also he gives the dressing room a little bit of a Brazilian feeling and gives us in the end, the freedom that we want.

Next to them, we are very ambitious, very clear in our match plan, but he is a player – he’s a little bit something between, and you need players like that also. I like to work with him.

Neto Borges joined Bristol City on loan from Middlesbrough this summer(Image: Bradley Collyer/PA Wire)

Just on Anis Mehmeti, as he’s been in such good form this season. How have you got that form out of him, and could you see him finding his way into the Albanian national set-up?

I would say I don’t want to give the Albanian head coach an opinion, maybe he has to-dos for himself, but at the same time, the Albanian national team must be on a really, really high level when you don’t think on Anis Mehmeti. Maybe they’re a team for the World Cup; in this direction, everyone should know what I mean.

I would say this is a player with an outstanding professional attitude. I would say we have many, many players with a really good attitude professional-wise, but Anis, professional-wise, is on a crazy level. His standard, his personal standards in training everything – this means preparation in front of the training, what he does in the training session, how he deals after training with his body – this is at an outstanding level. I’ve never had this before in my whole football life.

He has quality, and an attitude like that, this is normally, of course, for every team, a big win, and how he comes in successful moments, this is not a coincidence. This is hard work, but also smart decisions on the field, a high understanding of football moments, very intelligent, and tactical-wise, he is so flexible, with such a high bar ability. This is for every opponent not to calculate.

How important is that to have someone like Anis with his professionalism, his attitude, and ,of course, his on-pitch quality, in the changing room?

I think this is, in the end, always a domino effect when you have players, leaders in the game day. They lift the professional world, not only with blah blah blahs in the real world, but with all the actions.

In this direction, I would say Jason Knight, Anis Mehmeti, these are players in our dressing room who live the professional football attitude on the highest level. It’s not a coincidence that they perform on this level, but normally they’re always available, so in more directions, these are players with a big leverage for success for our club.

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Over the season, with the injuries that you’ve had, it’s felt like it’s almost been a case of stepping up and the next man up mentality. How important has that been to your season, especially today with Sinclair Armstrong taking that chance and getting his goal?

Of course. I think that [for] the players over the last few years in this club, the standard is always a little bit growing with the first-team, and right now they realised in the last season the play-offs. When I took over the team, I could feel, ‘Oh, the standard is high,’ also, this was not only a speech in the dressing room.

I can feel this – the boys want more, and we can see this, that every single player is on a really high level to bring his part to the table and invest. [It’s] not only empty words, [it’s] so very with substance. When players come in and score, and players come in and they’ve developed with good performances, then you have, in the end, always a healthy system and a really good team dynamic.

The team dynamic in our group is – I’ve said it so, so often – on a really high level.

On Sinclair again, he obviously got his goal today and has had two really good performances over the last couple of games. Does this feel like it could be the start of him really pushing forward in his City career?

I wish [for] that. I think yes, this is, I would say, a very good trigger to make the next [step], but we have to be top in the basics also. Of course we like when a striker scores but also, be connected in defensive moments on a high level, be connected with the team when we come in on-ball moments [so] that we don’t lose the ball – like he did today at a really good level.

How he made his link-up, how he holds the ball, save the ball in the right moment – I think in more directions we are happy but this was the first step, not more.

That’s three wins in a row now. How important is that going forward?

It gives us all a good feeling. Right now, you can see also how close everything is in the table; especially the first five, six positions are super close, so we have to be on top in every performance [so] that we can hold the position.

We can see also next to us, you cannot sleep, you cannot relax, you have to do the next game on a really high level, and then we will see.

Every word Gerhard Struber said on Blues win, Armstrong example, Bristol City standard and more

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