"Some would argue" - Claim made on Bristol City owner Steve Lansdown | OneFootball

FLW's Bristol City fan pundit has been speaking on whether Robins owner, Steve Lansdown, has the club's best interests at heart.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Bristol City appear to be a football club on the rise.

The Robins have steadily been sneaking up the Championship table over the last few years, and Liam Manning's side are now on the verge of recording their first play-off finish in the second tier since being promoted out of League One in 2015.

Steve Lansdown has been coming to Ashton Gate since the 1980s, and has been involved with the club at boardroom level since 1996, before eventually becoming the club's chairman in 2002.

He would eventually step down from that role in 2011, but would remain on as the club's owner, and has since overseen Bristol City's evolution into an established Championship outfit over the last decade.

"You can only get that if" - Claim made on Bristol City owner Steve Lansdown

We asked our Bristol City fan pundit, Tom Sandy: 'Are you confident that Steve Lansdown has the club's best interests at heart or not?'

Sandy said: "I'm pretty confident our club's owners have the club's best interests at heart.

"I think we got backed quite well in the summer transfer window, and we haven't exactly been put into financial jeopardy by our owners.

"I think that whilst maybe some would argue that there's been a lack of ambition, because of the fact that we haven't really challenged in the last 10 years and we've sort of just sat in the Championship, I think that there's a stability that brings that's really valuable.

"You can only get that if your owner really does have the club's best interests at heart. We've developed behind the scenes, the stadium has improved massively in the last decade, the youth facilities are some of the best in the country.

"So, I feel that our best interests are with the owners. I think, maybe they favour the rugby team (Bristol Bears) slightly more recently, but I think that's one of those things.

"I think Steve Lansdown's a great owner. Jon Lansdown, we're yet to see. Hopefully he can keep his father's legacy going, keep investing in the squad, and keep having ambition, which he has spoken about in his interviews where he's been saying that he wants us to push on to be in the top six.

"If you can fulfill that this season, then I think that proves it's not for the want of trying."

Bristol City look as though they're heading towards a potential golden era

Years of patience and Championship security appears to have laid the foundations for a bright future for Bristol City.

In Manning, they seem to have found an excellent young manager who can get the best out of his players, and take the team forward.

The Robins have also been enjoying some big paydays in recent years, with the sales of players such as Tommy Conway, Alex Scott and Antoine Semenyo all banking City major profits.

All three of those stars were also products of their academy system, highlighting the progress and good work being done in that department of the football club, which is always so vital for a club's self-sustainability.

In terms of player recruitment, the Robins have been making some highly shrewd additions in the transfer market of late, with the likes of Scott Twine, Anis Mehmeti, Jason Knight, Max Bird and Luke McNally all examples of that.

With the club now guaranteed to record their highest Championship finish since their eighth-placed campaign in 2018/19 this season, and potentially Premier League football next term, all signs point towards a highly exciting future at Ashton Gate.

As such, most Bristol City supporters will surely agree that the Lansdown's do indeed have the club's best interests at heart.