Bristol City grace the TV screens of the nation once more today for the visit of Wolves and Mick McCarthy expects them to be back on the box at Wembley come May.
The Wolves manager spoke highly of his opponents last night as he prepared his team to rediscover their winning touch in the league.
The league leaders lost 3-1 at home to Preston after being held to score draws against Sheffield United and Blackpool in a bleak festive period. And McCarthy is not expecting any sympathy from his friend and Bristol City boss Gary Johnson today.
“I feel (City) have got a good enough squad to be in the play-offs,” said McCarthy. “They are probably disappointed they are not up there now.
“It’s a TV game and we will both play football that’s for sure. Both sides have got pace and good footballers. We will have to come out and attack them.”
Johnson spent a year training alongside McCarthy on his pro-licence coaching qualification and as a result has a far better idea of the man behind the Yorkshire accent. "It's strange that, a big northerner and a little southerner, friends,” said Johnson. “Opposites attract I guess.
“I get on well with him. He's a good motivator and a good coach. He'll get them going. He'll be very nice to you when he's talking to you and then when the door shuts he'll want to rip your throat out. We've got to be aware of that.”
City have also got to be aware of McCarthy’s equally merciless strikers, Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and Chris Iwelumo. The former has bagged 16 goals already this season - twice that of leading City scorer Nicky Maynard - and the latter earned an international cap for Scotland on the back of his own 15-goal form.
Unfortunately for Iwelumo, that one cap brought notoriety of the wrong sort as THAT miss was replayed time and again on TV.
And despite scoring 15 goals this season the big Scotsman is now fearing for his place after failing to find the net in his last seven games for Wolves. Welcome news for City goalkeeper Adriano Basso who won’t forget the striker’s 90th-minute winner for his former club Charlton at Ashton Gate last season.
McCarthy refused to allay the striker’s fears yesterday, keeping his options open after watching Sam Vokes and Andy Keogh score in Wolves’ midweek 2-0 FA Cup win over Birmingham.
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