Bristol City fans react as deal agreed to seal ‘blockbuster signing’ after Gerhard Struber admission
Bristol City supporters are unsure if their club needs to sign ex-Liverpool youngster Ranel Young after reports emerged of their interest in his signature.
The Robins were impressive last season as they clinched a top-six finish, but saw their promotion dreams shattered by Sheffield United after a 6-0 aggregate defeat in the playoff semi-finals.
Liam Manning departed to join Norwich City following the loss, with City appointing former Barnsley boss Gerhard Struber as their new manager ahead of this season.
Struber has overseen a decent first few months of the campaign as the Robins battle for another playoff place, but some recent patchy form has reinforced their desire to improve his squad in January.
City are 11th in the Championship right now, four points from the playoffs, and some real quality additions could be the difference between missing out or making the top-six next May.
Bristol City in talks to sign ex-Liverpool starlet Young
Young joined Liverpool‘s youth ranks in 2017 from Huddersfield Town, and he signed his first professional contract with the Merseyside giants as a 17-year-old in 2023.
He made the first-team bench under Arne Slot last season but decided against extending his stay at Anfield in the summer as he rejected new contract terms.
The 19-year-old made a surprise move to Serbian second-tier club Usce, but featured just five times for the club before October before recently cancelling his contract.
City are now closing in on a deal to sign Young after entering talks with his camp, but their supporters are unsure if he will provide what they need in attack to make it to the Premier League this season.
Robins fans unsure about Young move after Struber’s ‘quality’ admission
Robins boss Struber recently spoke about his aims for the January window, saying: “I don’t want to bring someone in [just so] that we have, in the end, more numbers.
“I would say we know what we want and, in this direction, we want to improve the squad in January. It’s clear.”
City fans are not convinced that he is sticking to his word with the impending arrival of Young, with one taking to X to jokingly say: “19 years old with 5 senior appearances somewhere in Serbia. Blockbuster signing” with a heart-eyes emoji.
Another questioned the move by saying: “Slightly underwhelming…..he’s not a regular in his current team in Serbia, one assist in 5 games.”
While one fan added: “Can’t get too excited about (the move) – just depends on the role they see him having really. My guess is backup for when Fally (Mayulu) leaves in January? We can’t do any other business yet as the window is shut.”