26-year-old centre-back Tomas Kalas will be determined to impress for Bristol City this weekend as they travel to rivals Cardiff City for the Severnside derby in a highly-anticipated clash.
The Czech Republic international has only just returned to injury for the Robins after spending the last couple of months out with injury, and he will be determined to hit the levels that he did last season in terms of performance, starting against Cardiff.
The former Chelsea defender doesn't suffer from motivation issues and in particular he lives for the big games, and the big moments, the centre-back always turning up to deny the opposition with his loan performances at Ashton Gate last season tempting Lee Johnson into bringing the defender back permanently this summer.
Kalas also has a new partnership to form at the heart of the Robins defence, former Swansea City captain and current Wales international Ashley Williams having joined the club around the time of the 26-year-old's injury however made his debut in September after getting up to fitness.
The Czech international and the 35-year-old Welsh international both played their first City minutes together in the 2-2 draw with Barnsley in the last outing for City, and the pair will have been getting to know eachother's game this week in training following a tough result to take at Oakwell.
Kalas knows that he can learn a lot off of his more experienced team-mate who has captained a Premier League side, played in the Europa League and led his nation to a European Championships semi-final in 2016.
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The 26-year-old will be determined to see just how Williams plays and how he acts as a leader out on the pitch, while Kalas finds his feet after his recent spell on the sidelines.
The Bristol City supporters will have been waiting to see Williams and Kalas line up together as a centre-back partnership, and now the tough tackling and tough talking pair will be thrown into the deep end as they face Cardiff at The Cardiff City Stadium.
Kalas and Williams will be two of the most motivated players out on the pitch, as Williams knows what it's like to face Cardiff having worn a Swansea shirt for years and Kalas knows just what he has to do to reach his previous performance levels.
The 26-year-old Czech embodies what it means for a Bristol City player to face off against one of their oldest rivals, and he will be out to impress for the Robins this weekend.