Sam Bell recently became the seventh member of the Bristol City first-team to sign a new contract as while there may be understandable frustration at the lack of funds made available to Nigel Pearson to enable further additions in the transfer market, the club have worked hard to protect what they already have in the building.
Often that work doesn’t become apparent until the player or players become of relevance in the transfer market but as the breakdown below shows, with a few notable exceptions, City are in a pretty good place contract-wise with various assets under medium to long-term agreements, and the only pressing matters concern veteran figures or those who may not be quite providing full financial value.
It’s ironic therefore, that the manager who has presided over this sensible squad building is in such an uncertain position regarding his own future. Pearson’s agreement expires next summer and with no indication, as yet, if that is to be extended.
We've only included those who have made a first-team appearance for the club, as opposed to those in the Under-21 set-up who could become part of the senior squad in the future...
2024
- Taylor Gardner-Hickman (loan)
- Matty James
- Andy King
- Andi Weimann
- Joe Williams
Barring one player a little further down the page, these are the names top of the contract discussion in-tray, although the indication is that at this moment in time, there’s no immediate desire to open talks with any of the players who become free agents next summer.
That’s not to say they won’t happen, but when asked last month about Matty James, Pearson confirmed it wasn’t on the agenda as such, but was also mindful that it needed to be addressed sooner rather than later. Joe Williams also revealed there had been no talks regarding his own situation and given Andi Weimann has only just come back from injury, it’s fair to conclude the same scenario for the Austrian.
The concept of value will ultimately decide what happens here: from James and Weimann’s point of view they are both 32, so the length of the agreement is as important as the salary itself. They will also need to provide some physical guarantees over these next few months.
That part is also true of Williams, given his injury issues but also the financial aspect, as he was the only real marquee arrival in summer 2020. The question will ultimately be whether or not his desired wage (when talks begin) can be replaced with a midfielder on a more agreeable salary, or if Williams can play himself into a position whereby that discussion point becomes irrelevant, given the quality he's displayed.
2025
- Stefan Bajic
- Ayman Benarous
- Tommy Conway
- Kal Naismith
- Mark Sykes (club hold one-year option)
- Nahki Wells
One name, of course, stands out among this group as Conway now has less than two years on his deal in a season whereby he’s expected to exceed the 12 goals he scored in 2022/23. His hamstring injury curtailed those hopes to a degree, then again he showed everyone his capabilities with his match-winning brace at Rotherham. He still has 35 league games plus any FA Cup ties to get beyond that figure, making it still very much possible.
This is all significant because any striker of his age scoring double figures in the Championship over two individual seasons is bound to attract attention higher up the pyramid and City’s contract security over the Scotland Under-21 international isn’t as strong as it is with the rest of their assets.
Elsewhere, Mark Sykes’ option puts the Robins in a good position if he continues his development, while Kal Naismith and Nahki Wells - with the greatest of the respect to the fine professionals they are - are probably now of the age where City can be relatively relaxed about their situations.
We all hope Ayman Benarous can make a full return to the first-team and that is the most important factor at present, rather than any discussion around his deal, while Stefan Bajic remains a work in progress and it’s almost impossible to forecast what sort of position the Frenchman will be in next year, let alone the following summer.
2026
- Rob Atkinson
- Sam Bell
- Harry Cornick
- Rob Dickie (club hold one-year option)
- Ross McCrorie (club hold one-year option)
- Anis Mehmeti
- Max O’Leary
- Cam Pring
- Haydon Roberts
- George Tanner
- Zak Vyner
- Ephraim Yeboah
The fruits of this year’s labour can be witnessed below with Rob Atkinson, Sam Bell, Max O’Leary, Cam Pring, George Tanner, Zak Vyner and Ephraim Yeboah all signing three-year contracts, while the rest of the names on this list were all new signings either in January or the summer.
Subsequently, City have given themselves plenty of time to see how each player develops over the next season and a half, and consider any future negotiations on a case-by-case basis rather than being rushed into any decisions.
What’s interesting looking at this list as well is that the agreements stuck this year, and previous positive talks mean that for both 2024 and 2025, the Robins have avoided any repeats of previous summer windows whereby players in double figures were out of contract leading to considerable and avoidable change affecting the team dynamic, and also impacting performance across the campaign.
Granted that could become a discussion in 2025/26, but an awful lot can happen in that time and City have worked well to put themselves in this position. The only concern, you’d imagine, would be if the likes of Atkinson, Tanner or O’Leary don’t make the necessary leaps and fall from significance on contracts meaning they can’t be moved on. But we’re probably being overly and unnecessarily pessimistic there.
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2027
- Jason Knight
The lone name for 2027, a year which all seems very science fiction and way too far off in the distance to properly contemplate. However, it’s significant because as his performances have indicated so far, Jason Knight could become a very special player for City.
We don’t want to get too far ahead of ourselves but that £2m package could appear excellent value by the end of this season, let alone the next, and across both campaigns and then even into 2025/26, the Robins won’t be under great pressure to sell.
Of course, there is nuance to that as Knight could reach a point whereby it’s impossible not to start discussing a sale - see also: Alex Scott - but like others before him, City are very in a position to maximise his value, whether that be on the field in a red shirt, or in the transfer market.
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