Bristol City player ratings vs Portsmouth: Mehmeti strikes again but backline the stars in win

Bristol Live’s Bristol City player ratings as Gerhard Struber’s Robins beat Portsmouth at Fratton Park thanks to Anis Mehmeti’s header

15:14, 29 Nov 2025Updated 15:19, 29 Nov 2025

Anis Mehmeti of Bristol City celebrates after scoring against Portsmouth(Image: Bristol City/ Focus Images Limited)Radek Vitek – 7.5

Bristol City’s current number one didn’t have an awful lot to do in the first hralf at Fratton Park, but on the couple of occasions he was called into action, he did what was required of him to keep Portsmouth out. The Manchester United loanee was a fair bit busier in the second half and pulled off a superb save to deny Colby Bishop late on. A seventh clean sheet of the campaign is nothing to be sniffed at.

READ MORE: Portsmouth vs Bristol City live: Struber makes two changes as Knight out of Robins squadREAD MORE: Portsmouth’s John Mousinho shares Gerhard Struber verdict in ‘dangerous’ Bristol City appraisalGeorge Tanner – 8.5

Against one of the Championship’s better wide men over the course of the last few seasons, Josh Murphy, George Tanner did brilliantly well to marshal the Portsmouth winger as much as he possibly could. The Bristol City defender’s tackle early in the second half to initially hold up and then dispossess Murphy on the counter was excellent, and it wasn’t the only big tackle he made in the contest. In a second half which required a lot more defending than it did attacking, Tanner was superb.

Rob Dickie – 8

In this fixture last season, Portsmouth forward Colby Bishop was able to bully the Bristol City backline as he outfought and outmuscled the Robins’ back three on that day. That certainly wasn’t the case on Saturday afternoon, where Rob Dickie marshalled the forward brilliantly, winning seemingly every duel he entered and throwing his body in front of anything and everything he could. In recent weeks, he has thrived in these more physical affairs and that played a major role in securing the points for City.

Zak Vyner – 7.5

How much more solid do Bristol City look with Zak Vyner in the backline? The defender was called into action early in the second half when he hacked what looked to be a certain leveller off the goal line and remained involved throughout the remainder of the contest. Although the 28-year-old didn’t perhaps have the stand-out moments like George Tanner or Rob Dickie, he was solid as well.

Ross McCrorie – 6.5

The Scotsman was a busy man up and down the right flank as he both looked to provide an attacking threat and assist George Tanner defensively. While he had a couple of slightly shaky touches and seemed to end up in slightly strange positions sometimes, he didn’t stop running and ran himself into the ground. Without his effort and application, particularly in the closing exchanges, I’m not sure City see that game out.

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Adam Randell – 7.5

Mr Reliable once again. In Jason Knight’s absence, Adam Randell has stood up brilliantly and once again at Fratton Park, he kept things ticking over consistently as the beating heart of Bristol City’s team. Whenever the ball is loose, he seems to have a knack for getting there first and in matches like Saturday’s at Fratton Park, that simply cannot be undervalued. The Robins look to have found a player.

Mark Sykes – 7.5

The latest player to partner Adam Randell in the middle of the park for Bristol City, Mark Sykes, was stationed in a slightly more unusual position on Saturday lunchtime, but performed well. The Ireland international was lively in the first half as he looked to drive the Robins forward where possible and got stuck in out of possession. Kept things ticking over and popped up at some important times in the second half to help see the result out. A good first showing in central midfield.

Neto Borges – 8

While it was Anis Mehmeti’s header that gave Bristol City the lead, Neto Borges’ cross from the left flank deserves plenty of praise as it looked to make it harder to miss than score. The Brazilian brilliantly curled onto the head of the winger after just 18 minutes and continued to impress, both in and out of possession, in the remainder of the opening period. Like many others in the second half, he had plenty to do defensively and barring one or two every so slightly shaky moments, he stood up to the task. That wasn’t the Brazilian far away from his best.

Anis Mehmeti – 8

This season, an awful lot of what Bristol City do well tends to come through Anis Mehmeti. The winger got into some good areas early on at Fratton Park, but was perhaps guilty of not taking full advantage of those positions. That changed, however, when he rose very well to turn Neto Borges’ cross home midway through the first half. It was a brilliant header, and the sort of goal you don’t expect from Mehmeti. He could have and perhaps should have left the south coast with more than a single goal to his name, but he was the difference maker. What a season he is having.

Scott Twine (off for Yu Hirakawa, 90+2) – 8

On his return to the squad, Bristol City’s number 10 was very involved in the first half as he repeatedly picked up the ball in good positions and threaded some smart passes beyond the Portsmouth backline. Scott Twine’s display in the second half was much more about what he did off the ball, rather than on it. The attacking midfield didn’t stop running as he harried and pressed all over the park and even popped up with a couple of superb tackles. A performance, particularly after Wednesday, which showed his importance to this side.

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Emil Riis (off for Sinclair Armstrong, 61) – 6.5

In the opening exchanges, Emil Riis did, on a couple of occasions, get a couple of relatively straightforward passes wrong, but he grew into the first half. The Dane ran the channels well and linked up play with his back to goal smartly to bring the two attacking midfielders stationed behind him into the game. Kept working hard after the restart and came close with a right-footed shot, which wouldn’t have counted, before being replaced by Sinclair Armstrong on the hour. A reasonable showing.

Substitutes:Sinclair Armstrong – 6.5

Ran the channels well to see things out in what was a dramatic second-half.

Yu Hirakawa – N/A

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