Bristol City vs Norwich City injury news as four stars ruled out for key Championship clash

Bristol City have the opportunity to climb up to fifth in the Championship table if they beat Norwich City on Friday night. The Robins are firmly in the play-off race heading into the final nine games of the season and currently hold a record of 54 points from 37 games, leaving them just two points behind both Coventry City and West Brom who are both joint on 56 points after as many games.

Liam Manning’s side have been beaten just nine times all season - the sixth lowest loss rate of any team in the division - and they have picked up an impressive 33 points in front of the Ashton Gate faithful this term.

Their position will come as something of envy to opponents Norwich City, who with just one win in their last five matches, find themselves in 12th position and seven points behind the play-offs, leaving them with plenty of work to do if they are to gatecrash the top six positions in the closing stages of the season.

Ahead of an exciting Friday night fixture under the lights at Ashton Gate, we take a look at the latest Bristol City injury news after the 1-1 draw against Sheffield United and the options Manning has at his disposal.

Bristol City injury woes

Luke McNally - out: The 25-year-old defender is out for the season after suffering an ACL injury during Bristol's defeat against Swansea City last month. Estimated return date: unknown

Ross McCrorie - out: The full back is Not expected to return from a hamstring injury until later this month, with Bristol boss Liam Manning suggesting last week that the Scottish international will return during the March international break. Expected return date: 29/03/25 vs Burnley

Ayman Benarous - out: Ayman Benarous has had a nightmare with injuries in recent seasons. He missed the entirety of last term with an ACL injury and suffered a further setback on his road to recovery earlier this campaign. Expected return date: unknown

Adam Murphy - out: Bristol City fans are still waiting to see January 2024 signing Adam Murphy due to fitness problems. However, the Republic of Ireland under-21 international is closing in on a comeback after featuring for the reserve team. Expected return date: 29/03/25 vs Burnley

Nakhi Wells - returns: Nakhi Wells was given a 28 minute outing during the 1-1 draw with Sheffield United and is expected to be involved in some capacity once again on Friday night. Expected return date: 14/03/25 vs Norwich City

Bristol City assistant boss comments on ‘crazy schedule’

Speaking ahead of Friday night’s all-important home match with Norwich City, Bristol City assistant coach Chris Hogg slammed the quick turnaround of this week’s matches and claimed it was a huge risk to the player’s fitness levels. The former Hibs defender told Bristol Live: "I think we've spoken about it previously, the scheduling is crazy in my opinion how you play at 8:00pm on a Tuesday night and then you've got to go again on a Friday evening.

"Obviously, it's dictated to and I do get the aspect of the entertainment factor for a lot of people, but I think it puts the players under a lot of duress. We've got to see how we recover, see what the state of play is tomorrow and Thursday, and get the boys as ready as we can."

Read more: How likely Bristol City, Middlesbrough and Coventry are to go up according to update final table forecast