Gerhard Struber has shared an injury update from the Bristol City camp after Jason Knight and Mark Sykes missed the Reds' draw with Oxford United
10:00, 18 Jan 2026
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Bristol City were without both Jason Knight and Mark Sykes against Oxford United(Image: Getty Images and EFL)
Bristol City will have a "better picture" of whether or not Jason Knight can feature against Ipswich Town in the coming days, Gerhard Struber has confirmed, whilst providing the latest injury news from the Robins' camp after their draw with Oxford United.
Knight was left out of the Reds' matchday squad at the Kassam Stadium on Saturday afternoon as City had to weather a late storm to play out a 0-0 stalemate with the U's and, in turn, missed another valuable chance to close the gap to the Championship play-off places.
Without their captain, who missed out with what the Robins labelled a knock, Struber's side had Radek Vitek to thank for coming away with a point. In a game of few chances, the Manchester United loanee pulled off two smart saves to twice deny Stanley Mills in the second half.
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Although Saturday's result and performance were frustrating for all of a red and white persuasion, City will have a chance to get back to winning ways when they travel to Portman Road to face Ipswich on Tuesday evening. Whether their skipper will be part of the group to make the trip, however, is not yet completely clear.
"He has a ligament problem from the FA Cup game against Watford," Struber told Bristol Live on Saturday evening when asked about his captain's absence against Oxford. "He was not involved in the training session this week, and we hoped that he was maybe ready in this game, but this was too close.
"Now it's the next step - Ipswich - and it's important for us that he is, in the end, maybe involved in this game.
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"I think tomorrow and Monday will show us a better picture, and then we look forward hopefully, in a good direction with Knighty on Tuesday."
Knight's knock has come at a point of the season where it had felt as though the Robins had turned a corner in regards to their fitness issues, with the majority of Struber's squad - barring a handful of long-term absentees - now fit and available.
One of the players currently on their way back from the treatment table is Mark Sykes. The versatile winger hasn't played for the Reds since last month's defeat to Coventry City, where he was withdrawn at half-time having sustained what was later confirmed to be a quad injury.
While Saturday's trip to the Kassam Stadium ultimately came too soon for the Ireland international to feature against his former side, there is a genuine chance he could be ready and able to play a part against the Tractor Boys in midweek.
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Bristol City's Mark Sykes celebrates after scoring for the Robins against Stoke City(Image: EFL)
On the 28-year-old's recovery from injury, Struber said, "I think for Mark Sykes, it also looks good that he is involved in the roster on Tuesday.
"We hope that he can make the right steps [so] that he can maybe also get game time on Tuesday."
The Robins should also be able to call upon both George Earthy and Scott Twine against Kieran McKenna's side on Tuesday evening, despite the fact that the latter was drawn at the break against Oxford on Saturday afternoon.
Struber opted to substitute Twine ahead of the start of the second half at the Kassam Stadium, replacing the Reds' number 10 with Earthy - who made his first league appearance since returning to Ashton Gate on loan from West Ham United last weekend.
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After the full-time whistle, Struber confirmed such a decision was made in order to try and shift the momentum of the game rather than as a result of injury or an outright tactical shift.
"I would like to try today a little bit differently, and also I would [like] to give George Earthy a little bit of game time and give him the chance to show, in the Championship, right now, how we are," the head coach explained.
"I think this is sometimes, when we have the chance to have different profiles on the bench, of course, I have to use it and show on which level we are with these profiles and how big the impact can be.
"So I tried something, but this has nothing to do with tactical or performance things from Twiney; this was much more to use a chance with Earthy in the Championship."
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