Bristol Live’s predicted Bristol City team to face Preston North End as Gerhard Struber’s Reds aim to return to play-off placesGerhard Struber could hand Sam Morsy his Bristol City debut against Preston North End(Image: Getty Images and Bristol City)

For the fourth time in 10 days, it is matchday. Bristol City end their chaotic run of games over the festive period this afternoon as they welcome Preston North End to Ashton Gate with the aim of climbing back into the Championship play-off places.

In a manner that we should have perhaps come to expect in the second tier, the spell between Christmas and the New Year has already been a rollercoaster for the Robins. Boxing Day’s away win over West Brom was followed by a frustrating defeat to Millwall at The Den, before 2026 was started in scintillating fashion against Portsmouth.

Any demons left lurking after Monday’s trip to South East London were well and truly banished as Gerhard Struber’s side thrashed Pompey 5-0 at Ashton Gate on New Year’s Day. First-half goals from Adam Randell and Anis Mehmeti were followed by a Scott Twine strike and a Sinclair Armstrong brace to ensure all three points would remain in the West Country.

For this afternoon’s opponents, the start of the year also brought a routine victory. Preston beat bottom-of-the-table Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 at Deepdale on Thursday, with goals from Alistair McCann, Milutin Osmajic and Lewis Dobbin the difference.

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The three points gained against the Owls were enough to see the Lilywhites climb back above Millwall and into the play-off places. At the time of writing, North End sit sixth in the table, ahead of the Lions on goal difference and eight-placed City by a single point.

Win today, and the Robins could be back in the top six and potentially as high as fourth, depending on results elsewhere. While that won’t be easy, Struber has been boosted by the arrival of new signing Sam Morsy, the return of Harry Cornick from suspension and potentially, Rob Dickie may be ready to return to the starting line-up.

Of course, with this, the last of such an intense run, rotation could well be possible given the sheer amount of minutes some in this City squad have played over the last fortnight.

Just where that could occur, we won’t know until this afternoon. Until then, here’s how we think the Reds will start against Preston today…

Goalkeeper and defence

His performances in the absence of Radek Vitek may have divided supporters at times, but it is clear that Max O’Leary is very much Bristol City’s number one at this moment in time, at least until the Manchester United loanee returns from injury.

Judging by Gerhard Struber’s comments earlier this week, that may happen sooner than most initially expected, but for now, we expect O’Leary to retain his place against Preston North End. Yes, the Ireland international didn’t have a lot to do against Portsmouth last time out, but when he was called into action, he was solid and managed to keep a clean sheet.

Ahead of O’Leary, just how the Robins set up defensively will likely hinge on the fitness of Rob Dickie. The 29-year-old was an unused substitute against Pompey on Thursday evening; his absence was due to soreness in his groin. Struber was hopeful the vice-captain would be ready to feature this afternoon, having had a rest, and with that in mind, we’re going to back him to return to the starting line-up in place of George Tanner.

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With Militun Osmajic likely to lead the line for North End, Dickie’s physical presence would be incredibly beneficial at the heart of the Reds’ back three. In the reverse fixture at Deepdale, he was able to keep the Preston striker very, very quiet, and City’s chances of getting a result today would be boosted if he can do the same.

Such a change will allow Zak Vyner to return to the right-sided centre-back role, and on the other side, we think Cam Pring may well replace Rob Atkinson.

Yes, Atkinson would probably start in the Robins’ best side, but having featured from the off in both games already this week, after only recently returning from injury, we think he’ll start from the bench, and Pring will get the nod this time around.

Should we be correct, that will leave Atkinson, Tanner, and more than likely Haydon Roberts to offer a defensive alternative from the bench.

Midfield

We’ll start this section of the prediction at wing-back, because just who we think will start out wide for Bristol City today should be rather easy to work out, based on the back three we have already named.

Of course, this could be completely wrong if Rob Atkinson is to keep his place at left centre-back, but assuming it is Cam Pring who does start there, that will leave room for Neto Borges to feature at left wing-back. The Brazilian was excellent against Portsmouth – as he has been for much of his loan spell so far – and deserves to start once again.

Neto Borges joined Bristol City on loan from Middlesbrough in the summer transfer window(Image: EFL)

On the opposite wing, it is hard to look beyond Ross McCrorie. The Scotsman was solid again on Thursday afternoon, and with Mark Sykes still expected to be ruled out, he will more than likely start for the seventh game in a row.

Between the two wing-backs, there is a chance that we could see a City debut today, with Sam Morsy available for selection after his move to Ashton Gate was confirmed on Friday lunchtime. While we can’t say for sure the 34-year-old won’t feature from the off, we’d expect Jason Knight and Adam Randell to maintain their partnership against Preston.

Since Knight returned from injury in November, that midfield pairing has gone from strength to strength. Although Morsy could offer some fresh legs, Gerhard Struber is likely to be reluctant to break up such an impressive duo.

With that in mind, we’d expect the former Ipswich Town man to start on the bench and likely replace one of Randell or Knight in the second half.

Attack and striker

For our money, at least, it feels quite easy to predict two out of three of the members of Bristol City’s front three this afternoon.

In truth, it would come as a shock if either Anis Mehmeti or Scott Twine weren’t included in the Robins’ starting line-up after they both got on the scoresheet against Portsmouth, scoring their eighth and seventh goals of the campaign respectively.

Of course, there is a chance that one of the pairings could drop to the bench to accommodate a striker partnership. Such a system has worked well for Gerhard Struber’s side in recent weeks; this feels like a case of if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.

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What does feel up for debate, however, is who should lead the line? After his brace from the bench in midweek, you could make a really, really good case for Sinclair Armstrong getting the nod ahead of Emil Riis, but the Dane played an important role in the first half against John Mousinho’s side.

In all honesty, this is a toss-up, and regardless of which striker is named in the starting line-up when team news lands at 1:45pm, I don’t think supporters will be too irritated.

On this occasion, we’re going to hedge our bets and back Riis to keep his place. The 28-year-old probably remains the more consistent option at Struber’s disposal, and against a Preston team that has proven tough to beat, such consistency may be key.

If our guess is correct, it will likely be down to Armstrong, Sam Bell, and potentially Harry Cornick to offer an alternative from the bench, with the latter’s three-match suspension now served.

Bristol City predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Max O’Leary; Zak Vyner; Rob Dickie, Cam Pring; Ross McCrorie, Adam Randell, Jason Knight, Neto Borges; Scott Twine, Anis Mehmeti; Emil Riis

OPINION

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