CITY’S poor form continued last Saturday with a 3-1 defeat at Burnley that all but seals the club’s fate of relegation to League One.

Now eight points adrift of safety and rooted to the bottom of the table, it would take a miracle over the final five games of the season for City to survive.

Our results away from home under O’Driscoll have been dreadful, it has to be said. We have collected a solitary point (at Blackpool) from the eight away games he has taken charge of. In addition, Albert Adomah’s opener for us on Saturday was the first goal City have scored from open play on their travels in these eight games. That in itself is a quite shocking statistic, and we have offered very little as an attacking threat on the road. O’Driscoll will have to address this in time for next season.

I feel that Jon Stead’s,absence in the last four matches, who was such a talismanic figure in our survival run-in last season, has been a big blow. With Ryan Taylor and Sam Baldock also suffering spells on the sidelines we have been painfully lacking in strikers, particularly one that can hold the ball up. O’Driscoll’s failure to land a replacement emergency loan striker in place of Taylor has perhaps cost us.

Two home games for City in the next week offer the chance of salvaging some much needed pride. Bolton are first up this Saturday (3pm) and are one of the division’s in-form teams having won seven of their last nine. Just two points off the play-offs, Bolton have it all to play for and I expect them to come down and attack us in search of a much needed win.

Birmingham are the visitors the following Tuesday (7.45pm) and may still need a point or three to ensure Championship safety. The Blues were looking like they might be in the thick of a relegation scrap a couple of months ago but have pulled away from danger just in time.

These are two tough games for us, and it would be great if we could continue our unbeaten home form under O’Driscoll for as long as possible.

Do you agree with Will’s views? Have your say below.