BBC Sport: Bristol City’s winless run stretched to five games as they fought out a goalless draw with Watford at Ashton Gate. The Robins enjoyed the better of the contest but were unable to find a way past visiting keeper Daniel Bachmann.

Sky Sports: City dominated for long periods without coming up with a finish, while the out-of-sorts visitors went the whole game without registering a shot on target.

BHappy: Shorn of Sarr, João Pedro and Asprilla on top of Louza we lack any verve whatsoever and all the cracks that their presence renders ignorable are painfully exposed.  Those four aren’t… an unfair advantage of course, for all that they are each surely destined to return to playing at the top level with or without Watford.  You’re allowedto have good players. Had we sold Sarr and/or JP over the summer as we surely expected to, we’d have invested in some Polyfilla (other brands are available) to fill some of those cracks.

Fran’s Watford Blog: At half time the City team of 97-98 were welcomed back for the 25^th anniversary of the season in which they won promotion to the second tier.  It was a little ill advised to do that when Watford were visiting as our memory of the corresponding tie that season was of the home fans holding up a banner declaring themselves Champions.  Pride went before a fall and it was the Hornets who topped the division that season on our way to the Premier League.  Still, the first person to be introduced to the crowd was the manager that season, the wonderful John Ward, who was given a very warm reception by the travelling Hornets.

Post Match

It wasn’t a classic and the fans were certainly not missing much by being absent from this one, but the Hornets kept the points tally ticking along this evening to ensure they are still bang in the mix for when, fingers crossed, they can return in some shape of form next month.

Watford draw 0-0 with Bristol City

Watford and Bristol City play out goalless draw

Vladimir Ivic in positive mood after Watford and Bristol City draw

Watford players rated after draw with Bristol City

Ben Foster tells Watford players to be more clinical

City goalkeeper Dan Bentley made the save of the match in the 74th minute, showing great reactions to tip over a shot from Domingos Quina.

Vladimir Ivic’s visitors, who were without three unnamed players who have tested positive for coronavirus, tailed off in the second half as City forward Antoine Semenyo looked the most likely to make something happen.

This was football which deserved to be played behind closed doors. That old Shankly quip about closing the curtains if Everton were playing down the bottom of the garden. But there’s something lurking underneath that too, a sense of how football re-shapes itself when it isn’t so conscious of the public gaze. It’s hard to believe that Bristol City could be quite this cautious in front of a stadium full of their own supporters; unless the opposition is particularly illustrious, and sometimes even then, home fans tend to want to see their team do more than line up in defensive banks. They don’t touch the ball for the first two minutes, content to get their shape and sit tight. In real life, you just can’t do that without a rising restlessness in the stands.

It ended honours even at Bristol City, and while it was level pegging at Ashton Gate, there was a difference of opinion when it came to discussing the performance for the podcast…