Bristol City's £10m agreement with Cardiff City made forward decision all worth it | OneFootball

Despite frustrations regarding his destination, Bristol City received £10 million for Bobby De Cordova-Reid in a fantastic piece of business.

Bobby De Cordova-Reid, currently on the books at Leicester City, was nurtured by his hometown club Bristol City before the club made big money on him in 2018.

Born in the Easton area of Bristol, De Cordova-Reid was picked up by the Robins academy in 2002 before he broke into the first team setup in 2011.

Several loan spells and a breakout Championship season later, the versatile forward left Ashton Gate in 2018 in favour of a Premier League move.

Following their promotion to the Premier League, Neil Warnock wasted no time in bringing De Cordova-Reid to Cardiff City, and while the switch across the Severn was controversial, Bristol City received a hefty £10 million fee for the academy graduate.

Bobby De Cordova-Reid rightfully earned his Premier League move

Across recent times, Bristol City have produced some fantastic players. Alex Scott, Antoine Semenyo, Lloyd Kelly and Tommy Conway are just a select few examples coming from the Robins' academy production line.

De Cordova-Reid is also right up there among these names. The forward has gone on to enjoy a fantastic career across the EFL and the Premier League, while he has represented Jamaica 38 times since making his debut for the national team in 2019.

When his time in the first team at Bristol City is considered, his final season for the Robins goes down as his best, as he netted 19 times while registering seven assists in the 2017/18 campaign to earn his move to the Premier League.

Operating in a free role behind central striker Famara Diédhiou, the Jamaican had become one of the central cogs in Lee Johnson's side.

Flying high in second place heading into the new year, Reid scored the opening goal against league leaders Wolves. A win on that evening would have seen the gap at the top cut to five points heading into the second half of the campaign. However, a late Ryan Bennett winner broke not just the Robins' hearts on the day, but also their promotion efforts.

Bristol City tailed off in 2018 as they went on to finish in 11th, causing Cardiff City to come in for De Cordova Reid following their promotion to the Premier League.

Controversial move to Cardiff earned Bristol City big money

While both Bristol City and Cardiff have their own main rivalries in Bristol Rovers and Swansea City, the Severnside Derby between the Robins and the Bluebirds is one of the first encounters eyed by supporters when the fixture list is released.

After flourishing in the 2017/18 campaign, a Premier League move was, of course, deserved.

However, Bristol City were put in a difficult position, with it being Cardiff that had put a £10 million deal on the table for the Jamaican.

Naturally, both the club and supporters wouldn't have wanted to sell an academy graduate to their rivals; however, through a different lens, receiving a £10 million fee for said academy graduate was simply fantastic business.

De Cordova-Reid went on to score five goals and register two assists in the Premier League, as Cardiff faced relegation after an 18th-place finish. Expected to play a crucial role in the Championship for Warnock's side, the forward made a surprise exit, joining promotion favourites Fulham ahead of the 2019/20 campaign.

Making the deal permanent after their promotion to the Premier League in 2020, he remained at Fulham until 2024, going on to join Leicester City.

Despite his Cardiff move not going as planned, De Cordova-Reid went on to have a respectable top-flight career following his move from Bristol City.

While it may not have been the homegrown story supporters would have hoped for at Ashton Gate, a £10 million deal with Cardiff turned out to be a fantastic piece of business for the Robins.