Bristol City reaction given to 'interesting' Tommy Elphick decision as Skubala arrives | OneFootball

Questions have been asked of Tommy Elphick and Bristol City amid Lincoln City boss Michael Skubala arriving at Ashton Gate this summer...

Tommy Elphick rejected the opportunity to join Bristol City, with the Robins opting for Michael Skubala from Lincoln City in the end.

A number of options emerged as potential replacements for Roy Hodgson after the 78-year-old joined as interim to take over from Gerhard Struber and end the season in 12th with Bristol City.

Instead, the Robins have honed in on Lincoln City's Michael Skubala to take the vacancy at Ashton Gate but there were other options on their radar over the last month. Tommy Elphick emerged on Bristol City's radar as a potential candidate.

Portsmouth boss John Mousinho was another, but Elphick turned Bristol City down in favour of remaining at AFC Bournemouth next season. That's despite the fact the assistant manager will not be working under Andoni Iraola in 2026/27.

Tommy Elphick wished well amid Bristol City turning to Michael Skubala

It's somewhat immaterial now with Skubala on his way in, but we asked our Bristol City fan pundit Tom Sandy for his thoughts on being rejected by Elphick and how it reflects on the Lansdown's to have had so many setbacks.

We also asked if a lack of potential budget could be a big reason as to why so many options had turned the club down. He said: "I mean, Elphick rejecting the Bristol City job, it's an interesting one. Obviously, we didn't really know what was going on behind the scenes.

"But he was one of our major targets here with Skubala. Iraola was asked questions about it and gave Elphick a lot of praise and said he was ready to step into management. It seemed really promising but he's now decided he's going to stay and help Marco Rose.

"Which you can completely understand, with the Europa League position for Bournemouth. That position that they're in, you can completely understand why he would want to stay there. That's a fantastic opportunity for him.

"However, it was a big blow because of the fact Mousinho and that front was cooled. A lot of the options that we were looking at, it looked like we decided on the shortlist and that almost none of the options we wanted to get are available.

"It's pretty bad because this feels like quite an important time in the club's history. This is a massive turning point either way. A massive crossroads, I should say. We've needed to get this managerial appointment right."

Questions raised over Bristol City budget for 2026/27

On whether the Bristol City budget was possibly an issue for Elphick, he added: "It was disappointing and I don't think a lack of potential budget was a big factor. I think it has been in the past, but I think we're going in a slightly different direction.

"You sort of expect, with the new manager coming in, and with this new project that we are building, you'd expect the budget to be appropriate for what is going forward.

"What the worry was is that these managers have not been looking at the project and going, 'that's something I have to be a part of'.

"Which is fair enough but we have wanted to get this right. I think we will now [with Skubala]. But it's a shame with Elphick because he seems to be quite well regarded.

"Bournemouth play some pretty good football. They have been one of the best teams in the league this season. Good luck to him next season. It was a shame for Bristol City but we will see what happens [with Skubala]."