“ BRIAN BARRY-MURPHY “

Brian Barry-Murphy spoke to the press after an impressive 4-1 victory over UEFA Champions League side AS Roma.



BBM:


“It was a great test for us.” Brian began. “We wanted this game purely because of the opposition that they are, and it was as competitive as we thought it would be, so it was really beneficial for us.

“We feel as if we have been improving throughout the course of pre-season. We obviously have a long way to go and a lot more to do, but I think the intensity of the game was just what we wanted so it would bring us on a lot and physically improve us, and it worked.

“You always want a little bit more, but we have an appreciation of how little football we’ve played and I understand we have to be patient with the players while they become physically conditioned to the way we want to play."

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BBM:

Cian Ashford netted a brace for City playing in a slightly different position, in the number ten role just behind Yousef Salech.

Brian commented: “I think he can do it really well. He’s shown us some really exciting things in that position and we know how good he is in wide areas. Cian can change the direction very quickly, and sometimes in central areas it can be harder for players to deal with that change in direction.

"You saw in the first half the move where he slipped in Joel Colwill, and he has the quality to make those final movements and create chances which is so important in that area.”

Alex Robertson also continued his impressive pre-season form from the defensive midfield position.

"Obviously there was a spell at this stage last season where it wasn’t straightforward, but since that he has been a cornerstone of our environment. Every single thing we try and do, he is a huge part of it. He can do that role for sure, but that’s an area that we are looking to improve and strengthen.”

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Got to be a great and bright manager he used the term cornerstone instead of your usual football clichés.

There were people on here who said last season that Ashford would do well as the ten. I doubted it because I wasn't sure if he had the right attributes to play there at first team level, but maybe was wrong about that.

Maybe he could play there if Rubin is not quite ready for the Wrexham game.

There were people on here who said last season that Ashford would do well as the ten. I doubted it because I wasn't sure if he had the right attributes to play there at first team level, but maybe was wrong about that.

Maybe he could play there if Rubin is not quite ready for the Wrexham game.

Ned Ashford was close behind your fav osho who was excellent yesterday swept up everything.