Josh Stokes has been left out of the matchday squad for two of Bristol City’s three competitive games so far this season

17:40, 20 Aug 2025Updated 20:59, 20 Aug 2025

Bristol City midfielder Josh Stokes at Ashton Gate(Image: Rogan Thomas/Bristol City)

Bristol City “need to be patient” with Josh Stokes, Gerhard Struber has insisted, but the Robins head coach is hopeful that the midfielder will be ready to feature consistently for the Reds’ first-team in “the next few weeks.”

City confirmed the signing of Stokes from Aldershot Town in January of last year, with the then-teenager immediately returning to the Shots on loan for the remainder of the 2023/24 campaign. After spending last pre-season with the Reds, the decision was taken to allow the attacking midfielder to leave BS3 temporarily once again, where he this time linked up with Cambridge United in League One.

In his time at the Cledara Abbey Stadium, Stokes scored eight goals and laid on four assists in all competitions, winning both the U’s Player of the Season and Young Player of the Season awards. That good form whilst away from Ashton Gate saw the 21-year-old rewarded with a new contract until the summer of 2028.

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However, having missed part of this year’s pre-season through injury, the former Cambridge loanee hasn’t been included in the matchday squad for any of City’s two Championship games so far this term. His only first-team involvement has come as a substitute in the Carabao Cup win over MK Dons, leading to questions around where he sits in the Robins’ current plans.

“He’s a little bit in the middle-world between,” Struber told Bristol Live when asked about Stokes’ current position in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday afternoon. “We know and we see it the last few weeks how big his talent is, but also, he has competition in the roster.

“We need a little bit to be patient with him in this way, but I have big trust in his skills. He’s a very interesting young player with very interesting skills. I hope he can make the next few weeks, the important steps, so that he’s also ready for more gametime. Not in the Under-21s, with us; this is the goal.

“I can see that he is a very hard-working boy, but also he has, in the pre-season, a little bit of a problem to be always ready, to be available. He has some topics, a small injury that brought him out for a short three weeks, so right now, I can feel he makes steps, good progress, and we hope he’s ready for us in the next few weeks, especially when we have more games.

“Especially next week, we start again with the League Cup, so we will see what’s going on with Stokes.”

With a little under two weeks left in the summer transfer window, Struber and City are still targeting further additions to their ranks. While the Reds head coach has been reluctant to disclose where and who he is looking to recruit, he has made no secret of his desire to, and confidence that the Robins will, secure one or two new faces.

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Understandably, given the size of the current squad in south Bristol, City CEO Tom Rawcliffe has explained that outgoings would likely be required if such signings are made before the September 1 deadline.

From a financial perspective, permanent exits would be more beneficial to the Robins than loan departures. However, Struber was quick to stress the importance of loan moves in the development of young players when he met the media ahead of City’s trip to Pride Park to face Derby County.

When asked if he saw Stokes as a first-team player, rather than one of the young players for whom the Reds could consider a loan, Struber said: “Yeah, but it’s always a little bit to do with what maybe comes in and what comes out.

“For me, it’s the most important thing for me that young players have a chance for gametime at the highest level, what is possible at the moment.

“In this direction, I plan with him, he’s an important player for us, but that I could say no in this direction, I think this would also be not honest.”

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