Nicky Maynard – A fond farewell?

I will be visiting Ashton Gate for the first time this season on Saturday to watch Bristol City take on Pompey.

Manager Keith Millen brought in a few new faces in the summer and – as is often the case – the players needed time to gel with each other. With the best will in the world though, pre-season games aren’t always enough for this to happen. Last night, however, they clicked for the first time in a 2-1 away win at the Walkers Stadium.

Millen has enough about him to get City up the table as he showed when he took over from Steve Coppell last season and steadied the ship, but he may have to do it without striker Nicky Maynard who has only one year left on his contract and is being touted with move to Newcastle, Leicester and Forest depending on which newspaper you read.

I could have understood a move to Leicester in the summer - as Sven Goran Eriksson was trying to build a promotion winning squad – but even though it is very early in the season, I now wonder whether the owners of the Foxes will be patient enough to allow Sven top turn things around. A few more bad results and the old trigger finger might start itching. I hope they allow him to sort things out, but can’t help but remember the messages they were putting out last year. Promotion to the Premier League was what they wanted at the very least and Sven’s job appeared to be on the line if it wasn’t achieved. The owners have obviously decided to stick with him for the time being, but …

The thought of playing in front of 52,000 at St. James’s Park, Newcastle where they treat their strikers like Gods would be tempting for any professional, but is it possible for a City goalscorer to handle the pressure that comes with the Toon number nine shirt (still available by the way)? Well Andy Cole didn’t do too badly there by setting goal scoring records galore.

I really can't see the attraction of leaving City and playing for Forest as it would seem a sideways step for the lad.

Last night Maynard knocked in a brace against Leicester and probably pushed his value up a little more, but you would think that for a player of his quality, Leicester, Newcastle and others would be prepared to push the boat out a little.

Personally, I think that if the $5 million plus that City are expected to get for him is reinvested in two or three players, it could prove good business and for that kind of money, Millen could certainly attract a decent couple of players.

As I’ve said on this blog before, Maynard has impressed me by not getting drawn into the whole transfer circus of words – even if it has meant that reporters have little to go on! He has always been an honest and level headed lad and, given his exploits last night, he is still giving his all for the City cause. If, or when, he does go he will probably receive a warm welcome if ever he returned to the red half of Brizzle.