Gerhard Struber dealt big Bristol City blow before the season's even started | OneFootball

Bristol City are set to be without their starting left-back for the beginning of the 2025/26 campaign

Bristol City are set to begin the 2025/26 season without starting defender Cam Pring.

The 27-year-old picked up an ankle injury whilst training in Portugal for pre-season, which unfortunately will require surgery.

Pring missed parts of the 2024/25 season with sporadic hamstring injuries too, and only just made the bench for the Robins’ play-off semi-final first leg against Sheffield United after missing the final two games of the regular season.

And, whilst being fit and starting the second leg, he was unable to help his side avoid a 6-0 aggregate defeat at the hands of the Blades.

Bristol City fans will have been hoping that their versatile defender, who mostly played either left-back or centre-back last season under Liam Manning, would be able to hit the ground running for the upcoming season under Gerhard Struber, but it looks like they won’t be seeing him until around September after this recent setback.

Cam Pring suffers untimely pre-season injury set back

According to Bristol City’s X account, Cam Pring sustained an ankle ligament injury during the side’s pre-season training camp in Portugal, which will require surgery.

The club expect that the 27-year-old will be out of action for around 12 weeks, meaning that he will miss at least the opening month of the 2025/26 season.

This isn’t the news that any Bristol City fan would want to hear, as the Bristol-born full-back has been one of the first names on the team sheet when fit, especially in the last couple of seasons.

Gerhard Struber’s first month at the helm at Ashton Gate sees a trip to play-off finalists Sheffield United on opening weekend, before hosting a hungry Charlton Athletic side the week after. They then travel to Derby County before hosting Hull City, leading into the first international break.

If Pring’s 12-week recovery timeline proves to be accurate, then the 27-year-old is set to miss those four games at least, and Struber will need to navigate them without one of his strongest defenders.

Losing Cam Pring is a blow for Bristol City

Having someone like Cam Pring miss the opening months of the season will be a big cause of frustration for Gerhard Struber.

Whilst not the flashiest defender in the league, you can always rely on Pring to be a force at the back, throwing himself into any duel. Last season, he ranked in the top 20% of Championship left-backs in duels won both on the ground and in the air, and won them at a rate of over 50%.

The hamstring injury he suffered towards the back end of last season almost coincided with a downturn in form at the complete wrong time for Bristol City, losing two of their last three games, leading to a thrashing at the hands of Sheffield United in the play-offs.

Everyone associated with Bristol City will be hoping to get their revenge on the Blades in their first league game of 2025/26 on August 9th, but it seems that they’ll have to do so without one of their more influential players in the side.