Former Chelsea, Ipswich and Derby County men: The best Bristol City transfer signings of the last five years

Every transfer window football clubs try to improve their squad to boost their chances of a successful season ahead.

But that can be easier said than done, given that for all but the top three or four clubs in the country, every side is at the mercy of a bigger predator whisking away a key player up the football food chain.

Budgets and contract length all play a huge part, as do the players’ individual wishes themselves. And as a result, no club gets every piece of recruitment correct.

With all of that in mind, we’ve cast our eyes over the last five years to pick out the best bits of transfer business we believe Bristol City have completed. They are in no particular order.

It is subjective, however, so let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Adam Webster

The now Brighton defender was brought for a fee of around £3.5m from Ipswich Town, and sold for more than £20m. And any future move might even net the Robins another fee, if it’s more than the original price sold for.

Many tip the ball-playing defender to make his England senior bow after caps at U18s and U19s level. ‘Webdini’, as monikered by City supporters, formed a partnership with Tomas Kalas that was the bedrock to a Bristol City side that finished 8th in the Championship and made the fifth round of the FA Cup under Lee Johnson.

Player of the Season in his one year at the club, before a transfer to the Premier League.

Tomas Kalas

The Czech Republic international had a very good Euro 2020 but then strangely couldn’t get in Nigel Pearson’s first choice XI.

However before that, the centre-back, who made his Premier League debut for Jose Mourinho at Anfield when Steven Gerrard slipped over, was one of Chelsea’s regular loanees, featuring in two promotions with Fulham and Middlesbrough.

Arrived in the South West for a big fee after a year on loan but has since climbed to almost 150 appearances for the Robins and been an under-rated presence at the back and a former skipper for the side.

Narrowly features in this list ahead of Rob Atkinson and Antoine Semenyo.

Dan Bentley

The club captain has made countless one-on-one saves and been a steady presence between the nets, having to repel competition from

Deserves sure mention for his professionalism and good service in Bristol City’s rearguard, even collecting the Player of the Season award in 2021.

It’s a mystery that few other sides have been interested in one of the club’s best and most consistent performers over the last years.

Andi Weimann

An easy pick: just how good has the Austria international been? So good, that former international boss Franco Foda could not ignore Weimann any longer and recalled the 31-year-old to his national side.

Weimann was the standout man in City’s disappointing 2021/22 season, netting 22 goals across the league season, only bettered by two other players in the league, both promoted.

All after a serious ACL injury the year before. An incredible athlete and professional, playing arguably his best football in the South West.

Alex Scott

The 19-year-old won international honours with England U19s in the summer and such is his standing that the club expected serious interest from the Premier League in the current window.

Now on a four-year contract signed a year ago, that looks to be fantastic work as Scott has one of the brightest of futures at the club. If he does leave Ashton Gate, it will likely only be for a very large transfer fee.

So a shout out to the contacts and eye of Bristol City academy director Brian Tinnion who helped recruit the Guernsey FC attacking midfielder from Tony Vance’s Green Lions side at the age of 16.