"Reflects badly on them" - Bristol City owner Steve Lansdown blamed as Liam Manning closes in on Norwich City | OneFootball

FLW's Bristol City fan pundit completely understands why Liam Manning would want to go to their Championship rivals

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

There's a high expectation that Liam Manning will leave Bristol City for another Championship club before the beginning of next season, as Norwich City look poised to secure his services.

John Percy revealed on Sunday that the Canaries will need to part with around £800,000 in compensation, a figure which they seem keen on paying to capture their new number one target.

Manning guided Bristol City to the Championship play-offs for the first time since 2008 last season, but his Robins side were swept away across both legs against Sheffield United. With Norwich eager for a top-six finish next season, they feel that the 39-year-old can achieve that at their club, which he coincidentally played for as a youth team player.

Under new owner Mark Attanasio, the Canaries look like an ambitious side, and one that will likely be backed financially this upcoming summer.

Bristol City hierarchy blamed for imminent Liam Manning move to Norwich City

Therefore, FLW's Bristol City fan pundit, Tom Sandy, feels that his manager's imminent departure reflects worse on the current ownership at Ashton Gate than it does on Manning himself.

Sandy seemed rather crestfallen when discussing Manning's links to Norwich City, and with good reason, with the 39-year-old giving Robins fans hope of a season in the first division for the first time since 1980.

However, his frustration was directed more at the Bristol City owner Steve Lansdown for a lack of backing, which you'd expect he'd receive more of at Carrow Road.

"It's disappointing that he's joining a division rival, but it's more frustration at our owner rather than Manning himself," Tom told FLW.

"I completely understand his move. He's had a really tough year; he lost his son, and he lives in Norfolk, so I get why he wants to move back closer to home, given the year he's had. I'm glad we could support him as much as we could whilst he's been here.

"They've got a lot of good players and should have a good budget, assuming Borja Sainz leaves, and obviously he'll be frustrated at the lack of backing from our owners - they've been transparent about it, but Manning has spoken in interviews about his frustration at it.

"So it reflects badly on them, because we've had a good season, finished sixth, and yet he wants to go to a team that finished further down the league."

Bristol City made no signings in January, whilst the Canaries have been one of the bigger spenders in the Championship since they came down from the Premier League in 2022. Now under new ownership, you'd expect that backing to remain, or even increase if the budget allows.

Focus should now be on the future at Bristol City

The fan pundit did have a slight hint of optimism as, despite his comments on a lack of backing, Sandy does acknowledge that there is a solid base at the club to build from, and that the right appointment could carry on what Manning did, if the 39-year-old were to join Norwich.

"A lot of fans will be frustrated, but I'm looking forward to who we'll get next, if Manning does leave," Sandy continued.

"It's disappointing, but it's what we do from here which will define what we do next season and in the coming seasons, rather than Manning leaving."

Sandy does feel that if his current manager jumps ship, losing his entire backroom staff would be equally damaging, too, as he feels they contributed as much as Manning did to last season's successes.

He concluded: "I think they're all brilliant and losing an entire backroom will almost be as big of a miss as Liam himself. It's not just one man who fuels the team on the pitch, it's all of them.

"So hopefully we can find the right replacement if he does leave, and we can still do something next season."