It's exactly seven years ago to the day since Bristol City appointed former midfielder Lee Johnson as their first-team manager. He had cut his cloth at Oldham Athletic and later Barnsley, and was tasked with keeping the Robins up.
He did just that, and guided them to safety with an 18th-placed finish, but a year later despite the tremendous form of Chelsea loanee Tammy Abraham, they had a finish of 17th, and confirmed their place in the Championship in the penultimate game of the season.
Johnson revolutionised City however, and after being allowed to spend a club record fee of £5.3m on Famara Diedhiou, the clubs fortunes improved with an 11th-placed finish. Players from abroad would continue to be recruited, whilst also scouring the lower league for the best young talent around. It was a campaign that was best remembered for reaching the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup, famously knocking out Jose Mourinho's Manchester United in front of a sold-out Ashton Gate. It would take eventual winners Manchester City to knock them out, with Pep Guardiola complimentary of Johnson's side.
A season later, Johnson, nearly matched the efforts of his father, who remains the closest to delivering the Premier League club to the West Country. He earned an eighth-place finish in 2018/2019, missing out by just four points to Frank Lampard's Derby County.
Unfortunately that would be the closest that City would get as the following season they finished 12th, and it would turn out to be Johnson's last at the club. He was sacked after suffering a Severnside Derby defeat to Cardiff City in the COVID-19 era, and later replaced by his assistant Dean Holden.
Since then, the club has changed with Nigel Pearson now at the helm, and a lot of the players Johnson brought in are no longer here. Several remain and are an integral part of the first-team picture whilst others are just hanging on. Here we take a look at those who came and went during Johnson's tenure in charge of City.
21. Fabian Giefer
German goalkeeper Giefer joined in January 2017, and made 11 appearances. Giefer is a free agent after leaving Wurzburger Kickers in 2021. | Getty Images Photo: Oliver Hardt/Getty Images
22. Tin Platovic
Platovic joined City from Schalke in January, and then he was quickly loaned out to Cheltenham. Platovic left the club in August 2018 and is now with Austrian side SV Ried. | Getty Images Photo: Harry Trump/Getty Images
23. Freddie Hinds
Hinds joined from Luton for an undisclosed fee and scored two goals in four appearances in three-and-a-half seasons at the club. He now plays in the non-league for Royston Town. | Getty Images Photo: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
24. Matty Taylor
Taylor was the first player in 30 years to make the move across Bristol. He got nine goals in 75 games for the Robins, but is now on loan at Port Vale from Oxford United. | Getty Images Photo: Alex Burstow/Getty Images