Marti Cifuentes absolutely loved one thing Bristol City fans did last night | OneFootball

Leicester City boss Marti Cifuentes praised the Bristol City fans for the way they treated Bobby De Cordova-Reid on his return to Ashton Gate.

Leicester City boss Marti Cifuentes praised the Bristol City supporters for their reaction to Bobby De Cordova in the 2-2 draw at Ashton Gate on Wednesday night.

The Foxes were on course for three points after a Jordan Ayew penalty and De Cordova-Reid’s smart finish had put the visitors two up at the break.

However, the Robins were dominant after the break, with Mark Sykes pulling one back a minute into the second half, and they got the point they deserved when Emil Riis equalised late on.

Marti Cifuentes praises Bobby De Cordova-Reid reception from Bristol City fans

This will have been a special fixture for De Cordova-Reid, as it saw him return to a club that is close to his heart.

The attacker came through the ranks at Bristol City, and he would go on to make over 150 appearances for the club, which included starring in the memorable 2017/18 campaign where he scored 19 goals.

That form brought a £10m transfer to Cardiff City, who were in the Premier League at the time, which obviously represented a big profit for Bristol City.

Therefore, De Cordova-Reid remains a popular figure among the Robins’ support, and that respect was shown during the game, with the forward not celebrating after he had doubled Leicester’s lead.

Then, when he was replaced in the second half, all four stands applauded De Cordova-Reid, in a moment the player was sure to have appreciated. It was also noticed by Cifuentes, as the Leicester chief commented on the reaction when speaking via Yahoo Sport.

“Bobby De Cordova-Reid is an important player for us going forward and deserved his goal. Fair play to the Bristol fans for joining ours in applauding him when he came off. It was a nice moment for him.”

Marti Cifuentes is still searching for consistency with Leicester City

It was nice to see the Bristol City fans show appreciation to De Cordova-Reid, as, particularly in modern football, it seems as though players come in for criticism as soon as they leave.

But, he did a lot for the club, and is a real success story for the academy, whilst he worked hard and changed his game to have the career he has done.

So, Cifuentes was right to praise the fans, but he will be concerned by the way his team fell apart in the second half, as they really were poor.

The Spaniard has endured a tough start to life in charge of the Midlands outfit, and whilst it had been hoped the win over Derby on Saturday was a turning point, the second half performance shows that they still have a lot of work to do.

The boss will no doubt be leaning on experienced players like De Cordova-Reid to help the team through this tough period, and things don’t get any easier for Leicester as they host in-form Ipswich Town this weekend.