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Bristol City welcome Stoke City to Ashton Gate Stadium in EFL Championship action on Friday.
The hosts are 14th in the standings with 49 points while the visitors are three points and three places above in 11th position. Even if one side records a win over the other, the chances of the winner moving into the top 10 are slim.
In their previous outing before the international break, Bristol fell 2-0 to struggling Rotherham. Meanwhile, Stoke eked out a narrow 1-0 win over Wayne Rooney's Derby County.
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Bristol City vs Stoke City Head-to-Head
The two clubs have met 57 times across all competitions so far. The Potters have been the dominant side in these meetings, with 25 wins to their name, while the hosts have won 15 times.
The two sides have shared the spoils on 17 occasions, but in their last 10 encounters only two have ended in draws.
They last clashed at the Britannia Stadium in September. The Robins recorded a 2-0 win in that game and Stoke will be looking forward to returning the favor in this reverse fixture.
Bristol City form guide in the Championship: L-D-W-L-L
Stoke City form guide in the Championship: W-D-L-W-L
Bristol City vs Stoke City Team News
Bristol City
The hosts have a lengthy injury list at the moment. Fortunately, the defensive duo of Tomas Kalas and Tommy Rowe are expected to return for this fixture.
Callum O’Dowda, Jay Dasilva, Alfie Mawson, Andreas Weimann and Nathan Baker remain ruled out of the fixture on account of injuries.
Striker Famara Diedhiou appeared for Senegal in the international break. His involvement remains doubtful as he needs to undergo a COVID-19 test before being eligible to play over the weekend.
Injuries: Callum O’Dowda, Jay Dasilva, Alfie Mawson, Andreas Weimann, Nathan Baker
Doubtful: Famara Diedhiou
Suspensions: None
Stoke City
Michael O'Neill won't be able to count upon the services of Joe Allen and Nathan Collins, as both players are long-term absentees.
Sam Clucas, Tyrese Campbell, Steven Fletcher, Morgan Fox and Jordan Cousins all face late fitness tests. However, James McClean is fully fit and is in contention to start here.
Injuries: Nathan Collins, Joe Allen
Doubtful: Tyrese Campbell, Morgan Fox, Sam Clucas, Steven Fletcher, Jordan Cousins
Suspensions: None
Bristol City vs Stoke City Predicted XI
Bristol City Predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Max O'Leary; Steven Sessegnon, Tomas Kalas, Adrian Mariappa, Jack Hunt; Tyreeq Bakinson, Han-Noah Massengo; Danny Simpson, Nahki Wells, Antoine Semenyo; Famara Diedhiou
Stoke City Predicted XI (3-4-1-2): Angus Gunn; Danny Batth; Harry Souttar; James Chester; Rhys Norrington-Davies, John Obi Mikel, Jordan Thompson, Joe Allen; Rabbi Matondo; Nick Powell, Jacob Brown
Bristol City vs Stoke City Prediction
Bristol and Stoke have both suffered from loss of personnel to injuries in recent weeks. The international break allowed some players to return to the fold.
Given their inconsistencies this term, it is difficult to predict a winner between the two sides. Based solely on current form, we predict a win for the visitors here.
Prediction: Bristol City 1-2 Stoke City.
