Liam Manning sheds light on Fally Mayulu progress as striker on 'upward curve' at Bristol City

Liam Manning has admitted that Fally Mayulu is "heading in the right direction" having initially lacked consistency in his training level after making the move to Bristol City.

The Frenchman was the Robins' first signing of the summer transfer window, making the move to the Championship from Rapid Vienna after a reasonable season in the Austrian Bundesliga.

Mayulu's City career got off to an excellent start as the 22-year-old scored off of the bench in his Championship debut against Hull City before finding the net in his first league appearance at Ashton Gate in the crazy 4-3 win over Millwall.

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But in recent weeks, supporters have seen very little of the forward in action, with his only start coming all the way back in September and his last appearance coming in the 1-0 defeat to Watford at Vicarage Road.

Manning has repeatedly insisted the Robins are working hard to get the best out of the striker and the City boss lifted the lid on how the forward is coping with the jump to Championship football.

"There are numerous aspects to it," Manning explained on Friday afternoon. "You also take into account, with someone like Fally, the overseas move which is completely different for him. Some people adapt quickly, others take a bit more time and he's had to be patient.

"In terms of training level at the start, he obviously scored a couple of really good goals but behind that, the consistency of the training was one that we knew he needed to get better at.

"It's a big jump up, the intensity of the league, you switch off for a second in the Championship, you're talking three or four metres. That's the difference between us being broken and them being in on goal and us pressing, those are the margins we're talking about. For someone like Fally, it's taken a little bit of time.

"He's massively training better now so he's definitely heading in the right direction. I think sometimes when you work on the bits they need, their strengths suffer a little bit. All their energy is going into the things that we're trying to do, so the ability to refocus quickly, to stay present, to be cleaner with the basics. Sometimes then, your strengths naturally suffer but what you do, is when you come out of it, you come out at a higher level and Fally is on that upward curve at the minute."

Although Mayulu hasn't scored a goal in Bristol City colours since the win over Millwall back in August, the Frenchman has shown flashes of his ability off of the bench which has left supporters wanting to see more of him in action.

However, Nahki Wells appears to remain top of the attacking pecking order at this moment in time, with Sinclair Armstrong next in line. The Ireland youth international started the Reds' 1-1 draw with Sunderland at the Stadium of Light and while he wasn't at his best, Manning was happy with his display.

With Armstrong set to miss Saturday afternoon's showdown with QPR however, the door may well open for the 22-year-old to make his first appearance in four matches against Marti Cifuentes' side. While Manning believes there is still more work for the forward to do, he's backed Mayulu to finish the season strongly in the South West.

"I haven't shifted away from my thoughts on Fally," explained the City boss. "I know he won't have had the minutes he'd have wanted but I know he's going to be important to us in the future. I'm sitting with him this afternoon actually, it's constant. You can't put a timeframe on development, but the work goes in to make sure we're pushing him.

"I thought he was really good against Norwich, and did really well. It's those bits, naturally the Championship is quicker than what he's used to, and the intensity's higher so naturally what people tend to go after is the technical stuff but for me, it's actually the psychological stuff. It's thinking quicker, it's seeing the picture quicker, it's having the composure under pressure to do it quicker.

"So for me, it's affecting the psychological stuff and I know the technical stuff is in there. Those are the bits we're working on, he's improving daily and obviously, I get to see him every day. The staff do a good job working with him and he will be one that will finish strong."

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