Bristol City predicted team vs Derby: Potential Burgzorg debut as Robins deal with Atkinson blow

Bristol Live’s predicted Bristol City team to face Derby County with Delano Burgzorg potentially in contention for his Robins debut

Bristol City boss Gerhard Struber could hand Delano Burgzorg his debut against Derby County(Image: Getty Images and Bristol City)

For Bristol City fans, the last few days have seen attention directed towards matters in the transfer window, rather than on the pitch. While January is nearing its crescendo, this evening, focus returns to actual football as Derby County travel to Ashton Gate.

After a difficult spell in south Bristol, the last week or so has seen a bit more positivity emerge in red and white circles. Such a shift in mood started last weekend as the Robins ended a three-match winless run in the Championship with a win over Sheffield Wednesday.

Albeit against the Championship’s bottom side, Gerhard Struber’s side worked hard to claim a first three points since New Year’s Day. Their patience was rewarded when, in the second half, Scott Twine nodded home the opener before Sam Bell wrapped up the points with 12 minutes left to play, with 2-0 the final scoreline.

For this evening’s opponents, last weekend was slightly less fruitful. Derby were unable to secure three straight wins as they were held to a 1-1 draw by West Brom at Pride Park, with a late, late Chris Mepham header cancelling out Patrick Agyemang’s first-half opener.

The Baggies’ late leveller ensured that the Rams remained just behind City in the Championship table. After 29 matches, John Eustace’s side sit 11th, one point away from the seventh-placed Robins and two adrift of Wrexham and the play-off places.

Naturally, the proximity of the two sides in the current standings means that this evening’s contest has a rather important feel to it. The Reds will have to take on that challenge without Rob Atkinson – who has sustained an ankle injury – Zak Vyner, and Max Bird. However, Struber’s boys will be boosted by the return of Joe Williams as well as the arrival of new signings Delano Burgzorg and Seb Naylor.

With the rest of the division’s teams not in action until tomorrow, the Robins have a chance to turn the pressure back onto the teams in and around them in the table. Of course, doing so won’t be straightforward and picking the starting line-up is unlikely to be so either.

We’ve still had a go at doing so, however, so here is how we think City will set up against Derby County this evening…

Goalkeeper and defence

In all honesty, the clean sheet Radek Vitek kept against Sheffield Wednesday last weekend was probably one of the more routine of the nine he has managed so far in Bristol City colours. The Manchester United loanee didn’t really have a save to make, but remained reliable on the rare occasion his services were called upon.

Barring any surprise injury, which Gerhard Struber made no mention of on Friday afternoon, we would expect the 22-year-old to continue between the posts against Derby County, with Joe Lumley likely to start amongst the substitutes again following Max O’Leary’s departure.

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Ahead of Vitek, Struber will have to shuffle his defensive pack this evening, with Rob Atkinson set to spend the next couple of weeks on the sidelines with an ankle injury. Zak Vyner also remains unavailable for selection, meaning the Robins boss has one or two gaps to fill.

Our bet is that the City head coach will stand by the three-at-the-back formation that he has preferred for so much of the campaign so far, with Cam Pring slotting in on the left side of the trio alongside Rob Dickie and George Tanner.

Yes, such a combination does leave the Reds slightly short in terms of height, but Tanner and Pring’s pace on either side of Dickie should mean that the Robins are able to remain defensively sound in transition, even if they may struggle in the air.

If we are correct, it will be interesting to see who the defensive alternative is amongst the substitutes. If he’s available for selection, Seb Naylor may be straight onto the bench, with options limited through injury and outgoing transfer business.

Midfield

For so much of the season so far, predicting who will start in Bristol City’s midfield has been rather straightforward, with Adam Randell and – more often than not – Jason Knight the only fit options at Gerhard Struber’s disposal.

Now, with Sam Morsy in the building and Joe Williams once again available for selection, the Robins head coach has a decision to make. While he may opt to change things up against Derby County this evening, we think Struber will opt to stand by the combination of Knight and Randell, with Morsy and Williams likely to start amongst the substitutes.

City, by their boss’ own admission, will have to be careful with Williams over the coming weeks, given the sheer amount of football he’s missed this term. Although Morsy is more up to speed, Knight and Randell appear to be – when fit – Struber’s preferred midfield partnership.

Bristol City midfielder Adam Randell celebrates after scoring against Portsmouth(Image: Photo by Simon Galloway/Getty Images)

When it comes to who will flank that pairing, our bet is that it will be Neto Borges who starts at left wing-back and Ross McCrorie on the right, leaving Mark Sykes as the alternative on the bench.

On his return from suspension against Sheffield Wednesday last weekend, McCrorie looked incredibly bright, with his assist for Scott Twine’s opener the moment of real quality in the contest. Yes, Sykes can be just as effective, but with the smaller-than-usual backline at Struber’s disposal, McCrorie’s added physicality could be crucial.

Borges’ inclusion on the opposite wing feels likely given the fact that Cam Pring’s services will almost certainly be required in a deeper position. The Brazilian has been impressive this term and has shown, in the past, that he is capable of combining well with his fellow left-back both in and out of possession.

Attack and striker

When it comes to just who starts at the top end of the pitch, Bristol City’s options look slightly better stocked this evening than they did against Sheffield Wednesday, primarily because of the loan addition of Middlesbrough’s Delano Burgzorg.

Gerhard Struber said on Thursday that the 27-year-old would be involved in some capacity against Derby County tonight. We are still waiting for that to be officially confirmed, but if he is, we would be surprised if he were to be parachuted straight into the starting line-up. Instead, we think the City head coach will stand by the attacking midfield combination of George Earthy and Scott Twine that started last weekend.

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Did Earthy have his best game against the Owls? No, but very few in red and white did. The decision to withdraw him at half-time was made to put more pressure on Henrik Pedersen’s side’s backline, and while Struber may feel the same is required this evening, we think he’ll likely start with a solo striker.

Of course, we could be wide of the mark with this prediction. If we are, and the Robins do start with two up top, we’d back Sam Bell to be the man to replace Earthy, after his excellent cameo last time out.

However, assuming our guess is correct, we expect Emil Riis to again lead the line. The Dane hasn’t quite hit the heights expected of him in recent weeks – outside of that FA Cup hat-trick against Watford – but he remains the best finisher at the Reds’ disposal.

If the former Preston North End man does start up front, it will likely be down to Burgzorg, Sinclair Armstrong, Bell and potentially Leo Pecover to offer an alternative from the bench.

Bristol City predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Radek Vitek; George Tanner, Rob Dickie, Cam Pring; Ross McCrorie, Adam Randell, Jason Knight, Neto Borges; George Earthy, Scott Twine; Emil Riis

Bristol City predicted team vs Derby: Potential Burgzorg debut as Robins deal with Atkinson blow

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