Matty James will miss Bristol City’s final match of the season against Stoke City due to minor surgery for a hernia, but head coach Liam Manning has suggested that the midfielder might continue with the club beyond this summer. James, the team captain, is among four first-team players whose contracts expire next month, and his absence from the upcoming match indicates that his last appearance for the club, unless circumstances change, was the 64 minutes he played in the victory over Rotherham United.
While a contract offer has been made to Joe Williams to extend his stay, there has been no mention of James, who joined the club three years ago. If Williams remains and with Max Bird joining from Derby County after his loan spell, along with Jason Knight and Taylor Gardner-Hickman, Bristol City will have four senior central midfielders for the next season, excluding others who play further forward or younger talents like Adam Murphy and Jed Meerholz. However, Manning has suggested that this number could increase to five, with ongoing discussions and meetings to decide James’ future.
Manning stated that it’s not definite whether James has played his final game for the club, indicating that further meetings will take place to determine his future. Cam Pring has also concluded his appearances for the season due to a similar issue, undergoing a procedure to address it, ensuring he’ll be ready for pre-season in mid-June. Additionally, several other players, including Kal Naismith, Sam Bell, Rob Atkinson, and Ayman Benarous, are expected to resume training in about six weeks after recovering from various injuries.
With Pring unavailable for the last match, Manning might stick with the 3-4-2-1 system that has been successful during their recent unbeaten run. This could mean Haydon Roberts shifting to a wing-back role, creating an opening in defense, potentially filled by Zak Vyner, who has returned to training after a knee issue. If Vyner comes through Friday’s session without any setbacks, he could slot into the middle of the defensive trio, with Rob Dickie moving to Roberts’ position on the left.