‘The less said about the loss at Wigan the better’

The ebb-and-flow of Championship football never ceases to amaze me. Just over a week ago City fans were eulogising over our side that had won four on the trot. I myself predicted four points from our two away fixtures at West Brom and then Wigan, and I don’t think I was the only one confident of a decent return from these two away fixtures.

One week on, and after two losses, City fans find themselves in a more reflective mood as they go into our Friday night game with arguably the biggest side in the division, Aston Villa. Although Steve Bruce’s side haven’t started too well their starting eleven reads like a Premier League team in waiting if ever I’ve seen one.

Boasting the like of Kodjia, Abraham, Adomah and Bolasie, the game will also have a familiar feel to it as we welcome back some of our star players of recent years. For reasons that honestly escape me I imagine Bolasie will not get a warm reception as his departure seemed to irk the Ashton Gate faithful. Tammy Abraham and Albert Adomah are two of my favourite players of the last ten years however, so I am hoping they get the warm welcome they deserve.

The less said about last week’s loss at Wigan the better for most fans, but there are one or two things that struck me about our most abject performance of the season so far. I can’t get my head around why the Garner challenge on Webster is not a red card. That challenge would get you sent off in the Premier League, so why not the Championship?

I also have to say the the DW Stadium has to be one of the worst grounds in he country for atmosphere. I know it’s really more of a rugby stadium, but it must be a tough place to play football given the atmosphere.

Former Bristol City player David Cotterill did a very interesting and brave interview with the BBC this week. In the piece Cotterill discusses his battles with depression and alludes to the fact he feels it is rife among footballers.

Firstly, well done to Cotterill for giving the interview. It must have been a tough decision but I am certainly glad he has shone a light on an issue that needs to be talked about more. Danny Rose also spoke very eloquently about the issues he faced last season and hopefully this will open the door for more players to be open about such matters.

It may sound like a strange assertion, but its worth remembering that footballers are people too. They just happen to be people that perform under the highest level of scrutiny where every wrong decision or ‘bad day at the office’, gets magnified.

Playing football professionally is undoubtedly an amazing job, and it must be a real privilege to do so, but I feel for too long fans and the media alike have expected players to be superhuman or above feeling emotion.

Football seems to be far behind the curve of the rest of society in so many ways, but sadly I think the game’s views on mental health reflect a wider societal issue that we have with such matters. Well done to Danny Rose, David Cotterill and others who have been so open and I hope their bravery will help others in the same position.

Follow Dave Skinner on Twitter @dkinner10000