Bristol City head coach Gerhard Struber felt his team cheaply gave away their 2-0 defeat to the Blues, who he believes are the best team in the Championship, at Portman Road.

Jack Clarke netted a goal in each half to see Town to their seventh successive home victory and up to second in the table for at least 24 hours with Middlesbrough in action tomorrow at Stoke City.

“Really frustrating,” the Austrian said. “Of course, we expect a really good team. Ipswich is maybe in the league at the moment the best team. At the same time, we gifted this game so cheaply away. How we gave the goals.

“And in critical moments, I would say, we weren’t as sharp as you have to be against a team at this level and this is the shame and this is the end where I can say, ‘yes, it’s Ipswich’, but I would say we had the moment in the first half where we have to score [through Emil Riis after a Cedric Kipre error].

“You get not so many chances in a stadium like that against a team like that, but then you have to be ready and I think the second goal was a little bit the killer blow.

“We were in the driving seat, we had more control, we had a little bit more momentum for ourselves, maybe not the biggest chances, this was a problem also in the second half, but we had much more control and then it was really bad timing to concede the second goal.”

Regarding Clarke and his first goal in the eighth minute, Struber added: “We know [Jaden] Philogene and we know Clarke and they are, of course, in the league outstanding players.

“And we know what can come in that wide area but we didn’t stop them. Normally Georgy [Tanner] is the best player against the ball on the ground and I have such a big trust in this player, but in this moment he was not close enough and that happened.

“Our expectation was different today. I think we expected that we would bring something home and how we gave this away, this makes us not happy.”

Robins forward Anis Mehmeti is on the Blues’ list of potential recruits during this window with the 25-year-old’s contract up in the summer.

Struber says it’s no shock that the former Wycombe Wanderers man is attracting interest or that there are reports linking clubs.

“I think it is not a big surprise that Anis is linked to some clubs and I would say the media also needs something to write, I think it’s normal time that they bring some headlines,” he said.

“We will see. I think Anis knows how important he is for the team and he has, I would say, a really good offer on the table from us. We will see how he wants to decide, but also for us it’s important we need in the end players who are committed to Bristol City.

“I think we need players who love to play for Bristol City and not think always too much in different directions. We need players who are committed to us with the goal that we have and in this direction, of course, we also have to think.”

Asked whether he’s not ruling out selling Mehmeti during this window, Struber added: “We want to do everything in the end that we have Anis Mehmeti together for at least the next two years. In this direction we try.

“Of course, everything’s not in our hands. His contract is out in the summer and Anis Mehmeti has offers, it’s crystal clear.

“But I think he knows also on a really good level what he has with us. I’m looking forward and I hope and have a big hope in this way, that Anis maybe decides to stay with Bristol City.”

Photo: TWTD