Dean Holden praises impact of Bristol City bench after seeing off Huddersfield

Posted Wednesday, November 04, 2020 by PA

Bristol City boss Dean Holden hailed the impact of his substitutes after his side came from behind to claim a 2-1 Sky Bet Championship victory over Huddersfield.

Josh Koroma’s close-range finish put Town ahead two minutes before the break.

Jay Dasilva levelled after 77 minutes from a yard out, before Jamie Paterson netted the winner six minutes later.

“We just needed to stay in the game and then unleash the boys off the bench,” he said. “Players coming off the bench and performing is very pleasing.

“Everybody played a part today, it was about all the players sticking together and showing the spirit.

“All throughout the game you could hear the support and encouragement from the bench.

“We saw they only had one central striker and two wingers so we changed the shape and put strikers on.

“The subs have come on and impacted on the game. To win it is huge for us because it has been a tough few weeks.

“We have stayed patient with the players and kept the belief in the squad. We cannot wait for the derby (at Cardiff) on Friday now.

“We were punished last Saturday and we worked really hard on the shape and being really solid.

“We had the best two chances in the first half and didn’t take them. We could have scored them on another day.

“One moment of indecision cost us the goal. We had to keep the belief in the players at half-time and keep the game plan.

“We got on the ball more and were more of a threat.”

Huddersfield manager Carlos Corberan agreed that Bristol City’s substitutes had made the difference.

“We were better in the first half and for the first 15 minutes of the second, but their changes made a high impact and they unbalanced us,” he said.

“We couldn’t then break their press and we lost control of the game. That’s why we conceded the chances.

“We played a good first half. We knew they were strong with good attacking options. We defended well and did exactly what we have to do in the first half.

“We controlled the ball and created chances.

“They changed their players and that changed the game. They played with three strikers and we couldn’t stop their ascendancy.

“We tried to make changes, but it was not enough to stop their momentum.

“Maybe the players were a bit tired and needed some freshness.

“It was clear that we could not impose ourselves and recover the ball on the edge of our box.

“Unfortunately we could not get something positive out of the game – they were better than us for 15 minutes, we were better for maybe 60 minutes.

“We need to continue working hard on our behaviours. We tried to get the second but we could not take the chances we had to win it.”