Sammie Szmodics, who made just three league appearances for the Robins in 2019–20, is a far cry from the disappointed player who returns to Ashton Gate with Blackburn Rovers as the Championship’s top striker.
For Bristol City, the summer of 2019 was a turning point in their journey that turned out to be even more decisive than they could have ever dreamed. Lee Johnson may theoretically close the gap after leading them to eighth place in the Championship and within four points of the play-offs, the club’s best finish since 2008. They had to give it a shot (though it’s debatable if they succeeded or not).
In the summer of that year, City parted ways with longstanding veterans Frank Fielding and Marlon Pack, sold Lloyd Kelly and Adam Webster, and signed fifteen new players. It was a time of great rebuilding and change, which finally resulted in poor performance, the overthrow of Johnson, and the escalation of labor costs that were untenable in the post-Covid financial environment, necessitating a major financial reset.
It’s interesting to consider, however, that one of the first players through the door during that transfer window was a 23-year-old forward on a free transfer who had played his entire career in League Two. This is especially true in light of what was planned, carried out, spent, and the subsequent events and their impact.
After recovering from a broken leg at the age of 21, Sammie Szmodics was regarded as one of the top attacking talents in the EFL outside of the Championship. After scoring 28 goals in 89 games during his final two seasons at Colchester United, it was decided that he should transfer.
It was a significant check mark for the recruitment team because the process was regarded as being spot on, especially because City signed him to a three-year contract with the option of a further year. This was a young player with potential who, in the club’s opinion, might grow into a reliable Championship performer for the duration of his contract.
An upbeat character, Szmodics was. A vivacious, outgoing Essex energy ball with the ability to switch from being hilarious to irritating in less than five minutes. Yet a very endearing young man who aspired to excel and advance in his field and was also truthful, diligent, and motivated.
The irony of football is that he had already developed a small emotional bond because he had made his professional debut for the United States at Ashton Gate in a 1-1 League One match in September 2013 (the goal scorer for Colchester that day was Matt Taylor, who is currently manager of Rovers).
“I am delighted we have acquired a really talented, attacking and creative player in Sammie Szmodics,” stated former CEO Mark Ashton, who had been in charge of the hiring process, upon Szmodics’ signing.
“We are certain that he will be able to step up in this setting, where he will receive the necessary coaching.” Although he is still a young athlete, he is always developing and can contribute greatly to Lee Johnson’s squad.
Szmodics stated in the interview that went along with it: “I talked with my agent and talked with the gaffer a lot; he was a big reason I signed here. I couldn’t refuse the offer when the agent called since I am aware of the club’s size.
Later that evening, goalkeeper Dan Bentley was confirmed, and the transfer agenda somewhat advanced with the club record arrival of Tomas Kalas a few days later. However, Szmodics was exhibiting all the qualities City had signed him for—and then some—during the majority of that preseason, to the point where it was thought he would even have an instant impact.
The transfer agenda made some progress when club record arrival Tomas Kalas arrived a few days later. Later that evening, goalkeeper Dan Bentley was confirmed. But for much of that preseason, Szmodics was displaying all the traits City had signed him for, and then some, to the extent that it was believed he would even make an immediate impact.
Szmodics wasn’t the fan-favorite striker, but he was showing qualities that may perhaps provide something extra in the final third. City was still having trouble adding more firepower to compete with or complement Famara Diedhiou, as the Eddie Nketiah story was well underway.
Szmodics wasn’t the most well-liked striker by the supporters, but he was displaying traits that could help him out in the closing minutes. In the midst of the Eddie Nketiah narrative, City was still struggling to recruit more firepower to rival or enhance Famara Diedhiou.
The Johnsonism used to justify the Chelsea transfer was “clubs in the bag,” arguing that although Palmer might not be a surefire starter, he was an x-factor and the kind of inventive attacking player they lacked (the Jamie Paterson fan club may disagree). Narratives suggesting Palmer was effectively foisted upon Johnson are inaccurate, because the City head coach visited London before the transfer to persuade Johnson that Ashton Gate was a better fit for him than the Liberty Stadium, and Swansea City was also interested in recruiting him.
In their last preseason match, Szmodics had not helped himself either. The Premier League team defeated them 5-0, and Adam Webster looked to be playing automatically as the prospect of a top-tier transfer drew near.
He had looked like a lower league prospect struggling to meet the physical and tactical demands of playing at a higher level for the first time since his arrival. Suddenly, those four goals and performances were not indicative of a player on the verge of a breakthrough championship; rather, they were against teams from the Toolstation Western League, League Two, and the second division of the United Soccer League.
Following the match, which had seemed to be a prelude to the main event eight days later, Szmodics had been harsh with himself: “I sent the gaffer a message with some bullet points about how I thought I played and how I could improve, and he said, let’s have a face-to-face conversation, go through the clips and see how you can improve,” he said.
“You don’t play as poorly as you think when you play well, and vice versa when you play poorly,” the gaffer remarked.
“I left the meeting feeling very optimistic and thinking, ‘Maybe I didn’t do this, but I did this.’ It’s still early, but with a mentor like the gaffer, you’re always learning, and I’ve picked up so much knowledge quickly, it can only get better.
It chose me because you believe that you have done a terrible job. You are hard on yourself. I threw away a careless pass for a goal, and you just keep replaying that in your mind rather than reflecting, “You know what, I did this and this which was good.”
Johnson had been very careful with his words while speaking about Szmodics because the excitement around that game at Ashton Gate had been building steadily. At one point, he even said that he had to be persuaded to sign him by “everyone,” which was probably Ashton and the recruitment staff.
In fact, Szmodics questioned the Robins’ decision to bring him to the West Country in the first place shortly after he signed with Blackburn in 2022, citing the focus that was placed on his technical output rather than his stylistic fit with Johnson’s preferred style of play.
For more info: www.crownnews247.com
Leave a Reply