Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson hasn't had the season he would have wanted with the Robins this season but despite their shortcomings, he has now responded to calls over his side from Michael O'Neill at Stoke.

City have got some talented players in their squad and have pulled off some solid results over the course of the campaign but it hasn't been enough to drag them any higher up than 18th in the table.

Despite them being clear of relegation though and being higher than six other teams in the division, Stoke boss Michael O'Neill reportedly labelled the Robins as 'the worst team in the league.'

 

 

Whilst there are other clubs who have fared a lot worse, it is Bristol City who have been given this label by O'Neill - but Nigel Pearson has now responded to those claims via Bristol Live, as he claimed the Robins 'had beaten them twice' so everyone should 'make of that what they will.'

Over the course of the campaign, it has been City who have seen off Stoke on two occasions. They beat them 1-0 on Good Friday and earlier on in the season, they managed another 1-0 victory over the club.

Despite the Robins being able to best them this season, it hasn't stopped the Stoke boss from making a dig towards the club and branding them with the 'worst team' label.

Pearson though has been quick to respond - and whilst Stoke may finish higher up the table, he certainly wanted to make it clear to Bristol Live that they had the better of them over the two fixtures.

He said: "Have you seen Peterborough's results recently? They've got seven points out of nine.

"I keep saying don't always look at the table there are no mugs in this division. Absolutely no bad sides apart from apparently Stoke's manager told his players and staff we were the worst team in the league so that's quite interesting and we've beaten them twice so make of that what you will."

The Verdict

Nigel Pearson is right in his claims - Michael O'Neill has no right to label Bristol City as the worst team in the league, especially considering that the Robins have bested them not once but twice this season.

Add in the fact that the club are also safe from relegation and have teams even further below them in the division. Granted, the Potters will be finishing higher up in the table than them, but the league standings can change quickly especially in the Championship.

Pearson has worked well at times with his club and he has certainly compiled a team of some talented players. However, the results just haven't been consistent enough to get them any higher up the rankings and they'll want to be a lot further up next season.

They'll just be hoping not to lose some of those key players when the summer window opens its doors.