No Funds For Velicka Replacement

Chairman Steve Lansdown revealed that City will be paying injured Rangers loanee Andrius Velicka's wages until the end of the season.

Signed on loan from the Glasgow giants last week, Velicka broke down five minutes into his debut in the 1-0 home win over Q.P.R.

The big Lithuanian suffered a nasty anterior cruciate ligament injury to his right knee, but City are bound by the deal that saw him arrive.

"We have an agreement with Rangers and we have to honour it. We'll have to wait and see whether or not we can do a deal with them but, at the moment, we're paying Velicka's wages," Lansdown told the Bristol Evening Post.

"He's gone back to Scotland because his child goes to school up there and it's best for him.

"He's receiving treatment at Rangers, will continue his rehabilitation there and will take no further part in our season.

"It's a poor situation all round - poor for the player and poor for us."

City are still paying big wages to transfer-listed Adriano Basso and out-of-favour Lee Trundle, making any further signings unlikely.

Lansdown continued: "Money is an issue. Bearing in mind we're already paying for Velicka, forking out another couple of hundred thousand pounds to bring another forward in on loan for the rest of the season is not going to be easy.

"We worked hard to get Velicka and it's not easy to find the right player. We'll keep looking, but in the meantime it's up to the likes of young John Akinde to step up to the plate."

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