Seb Naylor made his first appearance in Bristol City colours for the Young Robins, following his winter transfer from Manchester City
07:00, 13 Feb 2026
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Bristol City defender Seb Naylor joined from Manchester City in January(Image: Rogan/Bristol City)
Seb Naylor's "Manchester City education" was visible from the first second of his first appearance in Bristol City colours, Gerhard Struber has claimed, with the Robins boss outlining his "big belief" in the defender in his assessment of his Under-21s debut.
Having joined the Reds on a permanent basis from Manchester City during the January transfer window, Naylor has featured in each of City's last two matchday squads - ultimately, being an unused substitute against both Derby County and Hull City in the Championship.
On Tuesday afternoon, however, the 20-year-old made his first appearance as a Robin, albeit for the Reds' Under-21s against Colchester United at the High Performance Centre.
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Naylor started - as did Joe Williams - and was heavily involved as the Young Robins pulled into a 5-0 lead early in the second half, thanks to braces from Harry Hogg and Leo Pecover, as well as a Luke Skinner strike. Unfortunately, with the game all but won, the contest was abandoned when the HPC pitch became waterlogged following heavy rainfall.
While his City debut - of sorts - was therefore cut short, Struber was impressed by what he had seen from the young left back, with his previous experience visible from the first whistle.
"Technical-wise, the Manchester City education, you could see it from the first second," the head coach told Bristol Live on Wednesday afternoon. "[He has] a really high technical power.
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"Of course, it's much more [about] how he executes and how he uses the technical power in the last third and also how he can deal in the Championship, in the end, with physical monsters in defending situations.
"In more directions, we have to grow with him and develop with him in exactly this way so that he can be successful and helpful."
Although Naylor is viewed as a prospect for the future at Ashton Gate, both Struber's previous comments and his inclusion in the Robins' last two matchday squads have shown that the young defender is part of the current first-team squad in place in south Bristol.
Of course, with Neto Borges and Cam Pring also battling to make City's left wing-back position their own, Naylor will have to work hard to force his way into Struber's starting line-up on a consistent basis. However, in the eyes of some fans, Saturday's FA Cup clash with League One's Port Vale would serve as the perfect opportunity to assess just how the defender fairs at a senior level.
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The former Manchester City prospect is seemingly likely to be part of the group that travels to Vale Park for the weekend's fifth-round clash, but his head coach is keen not to rush his development, particularly as the early signs suggest he could have a bright long-term future in the West Country.
Asked if he was close to making a first, first-team appearance, Struber replied, "Yes, he is close. On the same time, we don't need to win this race on Saturday.
"We want to give him time, and we want to develop him on a healthy way. But we can see he's brave, he has something that's really interesting, and that gives me a really big belief that in the future, he can be an interesting player for Bristol City."
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