Preview: Bristol City vs Wrexham - prediction, team news, lineups

Eighth and ninth place go head-to-head on Tuesday night as Bristol City welcome Wrexham in a huge Championship clash.

The Robins were last in action over a week ago after their FA Cup clash with Port Vale was postponed due to bad weather, while the Red Dragons booked their place in the fifth round with a 1-0 victory over Ipswich Town.

Match preview

Bristol City have endured an inconsistent run in recent weeks, with their position in the Championship table fluctuating from game to game.

With a longer break than expected after the cup tie postponed on Saturday, Gerhard Struber's side come into the midweek clash in ninth place with 46 points to their name, just two points outside the playoff places. 

Their latest clash, a match marked by the invasion of a squirrel, was particularly impressive after overcoming a fellow playoff hopeful in Hull City with a 3-2 win. 

Goals from Rob Atkinson, Ross McCrorie and Emil Riis were enough to claim three points and ensure they returned to winning ways and remain very much in the playoff conversation. 

Should they secure back-to-back league wins for the first time in 2026, Struber’s side could move above their upcoming opponents and potentially climb back into the top six.

© Imago

As for Wrexham, they have enjoyed a good start to life in the Championship, after securing promotion from League One last season. 

Survival and a potential mid-table finish would have been the main priority for Phil Parkinson's team at the start of the campaign, but the Welsh side have gone above and beyond those early season targets and enter Tuesday's game in eighth place. 

From 31 matches, Wrexham have recorded 12 wins, 11 draws and eight defeats to collect 47 points, leaving them just one point outside the top six.

With that said, Parkinson's side did lose to fellow promotion hopefuls Millwall in the league last time out, putting more pressure on Tuesday's game to make sure they return to winning ways. 

They have also carried their league form into the FA Cup, with Saturday’s impressive 1-0 win over Ipswich sending them into the fifth round for the first time in 29 years.

While awaiting who they will play for a place in the quarter-finals, a stage they have made just four times in their history, Wrexham turn their attention back to league football in a bid to re-enter the division's top six. 

The pair meet for the second time this season, with Wrexham winning the reverse fixture 2-0. 

Bristol City Championship form:

Bristol City form (all competitions):

Wrexham Championship form:

Wrexham form (all competitions):

Team News

© Imago / Sportimage

Bristol City have had the luxury of welcoming first-team players back into their team after enduring a major injury crisis and enjoying a longer break than expected between games. 

Luke McNally, Max Bird and Adam Murphy will, however, remain unavailable to Struber. 

Wrexham have the luxury of naming the same XI once again after coming away from their latest clash with no further injury concerns. 

However, they will be without Matty James, who came off injured just 35 minutes into their last league encounter and will not feature against his former side. 

Liberato Cacace also remains sidelined, while captain Dominic Hyam is expected to retain his place in defence.

Bristol City possible starting lineup:

Vitek; Tanner, Dickie, Atkinson; McCrorie, S. Morsy, Randell, N. Borges; Burgzorg, Riis, Twine 

Wrexham possible starting lineup:

Okonkwo; Cleworth, Hyam, Doyle; Longman, Sheaf, O'Brien, Thomason; Windass, Smith, Rathbone

We say: Bristol City 2-1 Wrexham

With the two sides separated by just a point, this is a difficult contest to call. However, Bristol City’s home advantage could prove decisive, and we expect them to edge a tight encounter to claim all three points.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.