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Bristol City’s Gerhard Struber has provided updates on Mark Sykes, Zak Vyner, George Tanner and Rob Atkinson ahead of Middlesbrough’s trip to Ashton Gate
Bristol City will be without Mark Sykes for the next few weeks after he sustained a quad injury, Gerhard Struber has confirmed, with the Reds boss providing an update on the winger, Zak Vyner, George Tanner and Rob Atkinson ahead of Middlesbrough’s trip to Ashton Gate.
The Robins welcome Kim Hellberg’s side to the West Country on Saturday afternoon as they look to secure a first win in four outings in their final game before Christmas. After 21 games, Boro sit second in the Championship, having won all four matches they’ve played under their new manager.
City, on the other hand, were beaten by Coventry City last time out, and the disappointment of the result was compounded when Sykes was forced off at half-time with what Struber confirmed in his post-match press conference to be a quad injury.
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At that point, the Robins head coach was hopeful the Ireland international would be able to shake his issue to take to the field against Middlesbrough. Now, though, having had a chance to assess the severity of the injury, a return in the new year seems more likely.
“No, he is not available this weekend,” Struber told Bristol Live on Tuesday afternoon during the Reds’ visit to Children’s Hospice South West. “He will be out for the next few weeks with a quad injury.
“Hopefully, he is – I would say – maybe back in the middle of January. This would be a really, really good time. That’s the situation around Mark Sykes.”
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While Sykes’ injury came during the defeat to the Sky Blues, neither Vyner nor Tanner were included in the Robins’ matchday squad to face Frank Lampard’s side last weekend. City confirmed prior to kick-off at the CBS Arena that both players were left out as a result of minor injuries.
As was the case with Sykes, Struber was optimistic both defenders would be available for selection against Boro, particularly given the clear week between matches. With the best part of four days to navigate between now and the meeting with Hellberg’s side, time remains on Vyner and Tanner’s side, and so far, the early signs have been positive.
“It looks, at the moment, good,” the head coach explained on the defensive pair. “They had an individual training session today, and both of them gave me a really good feedback.
“Hopefully, when everything goes right, they are available on Saturday.”
In the absence of Vyner and Tanner, and with both Luke McNally and Atkinson also sidelined by injury, Struber was forced to reshuffle things defensively against Coventry. Rob Dickie remained at the heart of the Robins’ backline, but was unusually flanked by both Cam Pring and Neto Borges, with the Brazilian playing in an unfamiliar role as City’s right-sided centre-back.
In truth, the Middlesbrough loanee performed reasonably in such a role; however, he will not be available for selection on Saturday afternoon, with the terms of his move to Ashton Gate meaning he cannot feature against his parent club.
Without Borges, the Reds’ defensive options once again become rather limited, especially with it still unclear whether or not Tanner and Vyner will be fit and able to feature from the off against Boro.
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Fortunately, Struber may be boosted by the return of Atkinson, with the head coach still not closing the door on the prospect of the 28-year-old featuring in a matchday squad for the first time in nine games this weekend.
When asked if there was still a chance Atkinson could be involved against Middlesbrough, the City boss said, “This looks really good. Everything goes right and also, he trained today with the team on a really good level.
“This looks, at the moment, that he could also be available on Saturday.
“I would say we have to look on him a little bit more,” Struber added. “He has not so many training [sessions] with the team when we would go on gametime with him on Saturday, so, of course, the load has to be a little bit different.
“Of course, we have to look very carefully on him.”
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