Bristol City assistant first-team coach Jamie McAllister has claimed his side missed an opportunity when they suffered a 2-0 defeat against Blackburn on Saturday afternoon.

The Robins fell to their second straight defeat as Rovers secured their fifth win in their last six matches with Bradley Johnson and Adam Armstrong scoring either side of half-time to ensure Lee Johnson's side dropped down to seventh in the table.

Bristol City have enjoyed an overall solid first half of the season given they have only lost five games, and they even secured a statement 2-1 victory over Fulham earlier this month, but their recent back-to-back losses have crushed some of the optimism at Ashton Gate.

Speaking to Bristol Live, McAllister has now asserted that City struggled to reach their highest level on Saturday, and this saw them miss a key opportunity seeing as they could have climbed to fourth with three points against Tony Mowbray's side.

"It was an opportunity missed," he said.

"We respect other teams in the Championship but we felt that we fell short on doing the basics on Saturday, winning tackles, getting on second balls and earning the right to play. Which was disappointing and not like us."

Can you score maximum points in this Bristol City quiz? Have a go now!

The Verdict

This was indeed a prime opportunity for City to return to winning ways following their defeat to Millwall earlier in the week, but Johnson's side are now undergoing an uncharacteristically poor run of form at a key point in the season.

The Robins definitely need to find some consistency if they want to cement their spot in the play-offs in the near future, and their recent form has suggested they are not yet capable of achieving this, despite the clear talent at the club.

Johnson has an excellent selection of midfield players to call upon, so this is where the Robins should be looking to dominate matches, and this is certainly one area Johnson should target in order to get his side back on track.