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Patch - 8.0.2
Transfer Budget - £600K - £1.3Million
Current SquadGoalkeepers
Adriano Basso - Starts off as possibly the best statistical keeper outside of the Prem, he is consist and pulls off a number of top notch saves. For this standard he is the perfect keeper and will keep you in a number of very tight games. You should have no real trouble keeping him, but if another club comes in with a bid for him be sure to reject it. All you need now is a consistant and controlled defence in front of him and conceeding should not be a worry.
KEY PLAYER
Chris Weale - You may have to look into getting a new back up keeper. Although Weale's technical stats do not look awful, he isn't up to the standard of the Championship or above if that is where you are heading.
You could look into trying to turn him into a profit as if transfer listed you will have a few lower league teams sniffing around him. He can easily bring in a nice little sum of 75K which can be used to invest in new players.Possible signing

Lubos Kamenar - 20 year old Slovakian keeper starting off for a Slovakian league side i would recommend as a must sign for Bristol City, he can be picked up for very little and looks like a real star of the future. Definately good enough back up for Basso and even good enough to step into the role of first team keeper if required:
Can be purchased for 50K
Defenders

Richard Keogh - To be hones Keogh is fairly pants, i would not bother keeping him even for back up. His stats aren't awful but they are not up to much either, so i would advise that you cash in and sell him to a lower league team as soon as you can.
You should be able to sell him for around 60 - 80K in the first transfer window.
Louis Carey - Key man in your defence, you must keep him at all costs. He has got a lot of experience and his stats for a Championship defender look very good. Getting on a bit but at 30 he still has at least 5 years left in him. He should be a likely candidate to take your captains armband and can provide a real threat in the air from set-pieces.
KEY PLAYER
Bradley Orr - Decent defender, should definately figure in your first 11 at right back. He will consistently provide you with good cover at the back, getting 7's and 8's most games. But also vitally as a full-back can offer you an extra dimension going forward. At the age of 24 he has still got a lot of time playing in him, and he will be a must have over the length of the season. You may have a few bids flying around for him and the beginning of the game but i would advise you to reject them.

Liam Fontaine - Liam looks to be a very decent young English defender and at the age of 21 has a lot of time to improve, though his position is the Central of defence and i would say he will probably be your third choice centre back. It is up to you as to whether you want to keep him and train him up, but i would personally sell him in the Summer of the first season.
Because he is a young talent you will have Watford, QPR and Ipswich sniffing around him and it is very possible to get £1.5 - 1.8Million which will be a huge help towards building a better squad.
Jamie McCombe - Jamie is a fairly good 24 year old English defender and can offer you good cover over the season. He is probably not technically good enough to get into your first team, but as a back up is a very safe bet. I would try to reject any bids you get for him, unless one is too good to refuse.

Tamas Vasko - 23 year old centre back on loan from Ujpest for the season. He is a very good defender for the level of the Championship and is one of only a few of your team who has played international football. I would definately advise you to start him at centre back alongside Louis Carey, and if possible extend his loan or buy him in the second season, he should be available for a fee of around or just over 100K.

Brian Wilson - 24 year old versatile right back and midfielder who is at best an extra in your team. His stats are pretty pants and his performances unfortunately are not much better.
If you need to make a little more money i would look to sell him, but i think you will be very lucky to hit the 100K valuation he starts with.
Jamie McAllister - At 29 he is not the youngest left wing back in the game, but he is a very good player and will certainly hold down a place in your starting 11 at left back. He has decent defensive and attacking stats and can prove to be a top performer, especially against the top teams. He can also chip in with a few goals as well. Though left back is your weakest position in the defence because there is no real back up.
Possible Signings

Matej Centrih - He is young and already has some decent defensive stats, he has a lot of time left in him ad with a decent training program his stats will shoot up very fast making him look like a top quality full back. Can play in both RB and CB so should provide very good backup for your defence, especially RB where you could do with that extra man.
You can pick him up on a free at the beginning of the game, but you may have to pay compensation of around 100K.

Daniel Jones - The area you need back up in quickly is Left back because you only have one natural in the position. T
his is where Jones comes in, he is young ad talented and for some reason on the loan list at the beginning of the game. In stead of spending money on a left back, it is a good bet to pick him up on loan as back up for the first team.
Peter Murphy - Carlisle FC - 200-300K - Very decent defender for any championship side and he starts the game very cheap. Is capable to step into the team at LB and put up some good performances. I would recommend him as, even if he is not a first team regular, he could be vital back up or your way towards a tidy proffit.
Midfield

Lee Johnson - Lee Johnson is a decent 26 year old English central midfielder, the managers son he is a favourite with some of the fans. He is a decent central midfeilder but nothing to write home about, he will probably get a place on the betch for your team in the season but unlikely to get too much first team action.

Ivan Sproule - 26 year old Northern Irish right winger, he has pace to brun but unfortunately not a lot more. He will beat defenders for pace all day but he doesn't have a lot more in his locker. I would probably look into buying a new Right Winger as back up for him or to replace him in the first team.

Nick Carle - New signing for Bristol City in real life, the 25 year old Australian can play in both CM and LM. But unfortunately his stats really are very poor and make the 500K price tag paid not look like the best bit of business. Though he will prove to be a fairly decent back up player to bring of the bench when needing to stabalise the midfielder of play a 4-5-1.

Michael McIndoe - McIndoe is a decent left winger and should definately get a place in your starting 11. He has good stats for the position and from my experience performs well constantly, especially in the big games. You may get a few bids coming in for him at the beginning of the season but i would advise against you accepting them.

David Noble - Not a fan i must say, he starts the game injuired but should be back after just under a month. He is 25 and has a decent overall set of stats but nothing that really makes him stand out from the rest,
i would probably look into selling him and you can easily stretch some teams to 400-500K for him.
Marvin Elliott - Young English defensive midfielder, arguably the best player you have in your squad. He is quality as a central midfielder, giving good cover to your back four but also chipping in with a fair few goals throughout the campaign. But also he can be played in defence so if you are really in a crisis he can play as a RB and can play there very well. It is likely that you will get a few bids for him, as his improve greatly with time but i would reject them all, this lad is what makes your team tick.
KEY PLAYERPossible Signings

Pablo Piatti -
This lad really is a must sign, and for 170K it makes this skillful 18 year old attacking midfielder a real bargain buy. He has got great stats and they will only go from strength to strength he really is a star, especially for the Championship. Though you will probably face quite a lot of opposition to get him to sign i think it is very possible and is the first man i would move for when starting the game. Piatti plays best i think just behind the strikers creating and scoring goals, give him a free role and he will create you plenty.


Frantisek Rajtoral - Another young and very exciting midfield talent that you can get to
sign on the dotted line for a fee of just 250K. He is a very good right winger and at this level with easily play a big role in creating goals and terrorising the oppositions left back. Again i would say he is a must buy, and along with Piatti will turn your midfield into a very strong one.

Strikers

Lee Trundle - In Lee you have a striker who is very capable of bagging the goals in for you in the Championship, he has good movement and can score with his feet and his head. If he gets on role it will be very difficult for defences to stop him and he is a must keep if you are looking to push for promotion.
KEY PLAYER
Dele Adebola - At 32 it is certainly true that Adebola isn't exactly young, but he could prove to be a very good player for you throughout a season. He plays very well upfront along side Trundle and can be used as more of a target man to play the ball into and wait for the midfield. He is very capable of getting 15 goals in the season and will pick up a huge number of assists.

Darren Byfield - Another striker who has seen brighter days but at 30 Byfield can still play a fairly important role, coming off the bench and scoring some very important goals at very important times.
Possible Signings

Ched Evans - A young Welsh striker who is very talented and can score goals from pretty much anywhere, if he is available he really is a must have.
Most of the time it is possible to snap him up on a year long loan, and if you can it is an absolute steal. Very capable of getting 20-25 goals in the season and could well be the driving force behind your promotion push. Get him as soon as you can and i am sure you will not regret it.

Formation and My Personal starting 11

The important thing about the formation you play with Bristol City is that they do not have the best players in the league so it is important not to over complicate the formation you play. A 4-4-2 is probably the best option with a diamond in midfield. This will allow you to be able to bring out the best in star player Marvin Elliot and add a bit more when going forward. It will help balance and stabalise your team and give you a bit more cover at the back and more force when driving towards the opponents defence. As seen above i have set out the starting 11 i would chose if you listen to the signings i have spoken about above.
Against the top teams in the division or in gritty away games i would recommend that you change this tactic around though to a flat 4-5-1. This will allow you to have a good number of men behind the ball when defending and two wingers to back up your lone man. So on the counter attack there is also the chance of nicking those vital away goals that you can then hold on to. If playing the 4-5-1 i suggest that you play Trundle as you lone striker as a target man and play the ball to feet. If you can get Trundle holding the ball up and playing the midfield into the game in the attacking third you should have a lot of joy.
Tactics
To explain the above i suggest that you play with a slightly attacking style, with a fairly quick tempo and short passing as this best suites the pace you have through your side, it is also important therefore i think that you play a counter attacking style. In particular the wings are very strong so i would suggest playing the ball down both flanks as much as possible trying to get balls into the box for your strikers to feed off. I think it is important that you use a target man with Bristol City and this can be done in two ways, Trundle can be played as a target man very effectively if you play the ball to feet, and if you go on to sign Ched Evans it would be a good idea to play the ball passed him and use his pace to get onto it. Finally if you manage to get Piatti i would use him as a playmaker just behind the two strikers giving him time and space to create chances for your top men to put it away. Also he can whip in a decent free-kick and corner allowing your team a decent chance of scoring some very valuable goals from set pieces.
Enjoy 
Edit: May 10, 08