Anis Mehmeti on international intentions, Burnley clash and his Bristol City 'responsibility'
Anis Mehmeti has certainly had a mixed start to his Bristol City career so far, having made the switch to Ashton Gate almost two years ago in January 2023.
The Albanian international hit the ground running under Nigel Pearson after he made the move from Wycombe Wanderers and while, he has made a habit of scoring important goals against big opposition, he has never quite established himself as a regular starter.
Last term, the tricky winger secured all three points for the Robins in their Good Friday win over Leicester City with an excellent long-range strike in front of the Ashton Gate crowd, having only weeks earlier smashed home in a disappointing late defeat to Premier League-bound Ipwsich Town.
READ MORE: Bristol City team news ahead of Burnley as Liam Manning sheds light on Joe Williams injury
READ MORE: Quarter-final clash and Three Lions debut: How Bristol City's internationals fared in November
Already this year, the 23-year-old has found the net on four occasions in just nine Championship starts and only trails the ever-green Nahki Wells in the Robins scoring charts ahead of Saturday afternoon’s clash with Burnley.
Although Mehmeti believes he’s currently playing his best football in a Bristol City shirt, the winger is striving to add that consistency to his game to take his career to the next level at Ashton Gate.
“I’ve shown glimpses of it in the past year and a half,” Mehmeti told Bristol Live. “But now it’s about taking that responsibility and showing everyone at the club and the fans that I can do it in every game.
“I’ve always been the type of guy that does a lot of talking off the pitch, I really want to do my talking on the pitch. If you look at my goals and the games I played best in last year, I scored in the Leicester game, I scored in the Ispwich game and I scored against a strong Hull side so I back myself against the very best and I’m confident going into every game.”
The 23-year-old has become something of a regular starter over the last few weeks, with Liam Manning’s wide options limited in the run-up to the international break with the likes of Mark Sykes, Sam Bell, and Scott Twine all stuck on the treatment table.
Playing on both the left and the right wing, the Albanian international’s quick feet and impressive dribbling ability have caused several defences problems so far this term, while his link-up with Wells has proven to be incredibly effective.
While Manning has confirmed that both Twine and Bell are edging closer to a return to first-team action, Mehmeti’s focus remains entirely on his own game, rather than those vying for his place in the starting line-up.
“They are two great lads and look, competition is healthy, especially if you want to get to where we want to get to,” the winger admitted.
“That drives me because I’ve got to keep my standards up here in order to play every single game. I’m not too focused on other players in that sense, I’m just focused on the team and doing the best I can for them.”
Saturday’s lunchtime clash with Burnley is the start of an intense run of fixtures in the lead-up to the festive period which has the potential to be decisive in the race for the Championship playoff positions.
Starting against the Clarets, City will play seven fixtures between the end of the November international break and Christmas Day and although that is an exhausting prospect on paper, Mehmeti insists both he and his teammates are keen to get their teeth into the fixtures after a interrupted start to the campaign.
“I think I said it after the international break, we’ve got amazing squad depth and we’ve got amazing players,” insisted the winger. “It’s just about being consistent now in our performances and we’re certainly showing signs of that. Now it’s just about showing it every game and we have all the chances to go into the playoffs for sure.
“Up until November, you play a few games, it’s an international break, then you play five games and it’s another international break. Now we’ve got what, 12 games in the next however long. I enjoy games more than anything so I’m really looking forward to the next group of games.”
On a personal note, the uninterrupted group of matches between now and the next international break in March could well provide the 23-year-old with a chance to stake his claim for a place in the Albanian national squad.
Despite his impressive form so far this season, the winger was left out of the squad for November’s fixtures. While he recognises the ball in his court with regard to his international future, Mehmeti’s focus remains on matters at Ashton Gate and the clash with Burnley.
“At the end of the day, I play for the club first so as long as I’m performing here, it’s on them to pick me come March,” he explained. “ I’m focused on here, I’m focused on scoring goals and most importantly trying to win games for Bristol City.
“We know every game is a hard game in this division, you’ve got teams which on paper you don’t think are hard and then you go there and it’s a tough fixture so I’m just focused on winning this game.
“At the end of the day, we’re at home so we’ve got to attack them. There are games like Norwich where you may go into the game not having full control with the ball, but they’re coming to our house so it’s about us implementing our style and just doing what we’ve been doing.
“As a player, I back myself against any team in the league respectively so I’m looking forward to it.”
READ MORE: 'That's my DNA' - Mark Ashton makes Bristol City point in Ipswich Town-Kieran McKenna admission
READ MORE: More than £3.5k raised for son of former Bristol City midfielder after recent head injury