Bristol City legend Brian Tinnion has fired back at former manager Lee Johnson after suggesting the best pathway for youngster Reuben McAllister is with Hibernian.
Johnson is working on a deal to bring City's 16-year-old midfielder to the Scottish side, where he would also reunite with his dad Jamie who was recently appointed his No2.
McAllister will sign a three-year deal with Hibs that will see his family relocate north of the border with Bristol World reporting the fee is close to £250,000 with a significant sell-on clause included.
According to the Edinburgh Evening News, Johnson was quizzed on the transfer at the weekend in which he responded: "It's probably going to happen but it's not definite, it's not done. We wouldn't have had the opportunity had Jamie [McAllister] and myself not been here.
"We believe it's the best pathway for him. He's a top young player but at the same time we've got a lot of respect for Bristol City – it's a family thing, we're not raiding them for their best players.”
Academy Director Tinnion was sceptical of the comment and took to social media to give the names of City's top players both past and present who have enjoyed success having broken through the successful City youth set-up into the first team.
Alongside a quizzical-looking emoji, he wrote: "Kelly, Semenyo, Scott, Oleary, Pring, Vyner, Bell, Conway, Towler, Benarous and lots more to come, best pathway."
Lloyd Kelly has just earned promotion to the top flight with Bournemouth following his £13million move in 2019 while Antoine Semenyo and Alex Scott in particular have enjoyed brilliant seasons with the first-team as Premier League clubs begin to circle.
Max O'Leary, Cam Pring, Zak Vyner, Sam Bell, Tommy Conway, Ryley Towler and Ayman Benarous have all made first-team appearances having worked their way up through the help of the academy. City also have an abundance of talent coming through and boasts facilities that would rival Premier League clubs.
City are eager for their young players to work and train with the first-team to help aid with their progression. Dylan Kadji joined pre-season with the senior set up while winger Marlee Francios was the latest talent to be pictured taking part of first-team training.
McAllister is highly-regarded with the staff at the Robins having made his Under-23 debut against Queens Park Rangers at the age of just 15 last October. The club have worked hard to keep him with the academy but ultimately the switch came down to family reasons.
He will be seen as a coup for Johnson with McAllister recently being linked with a number of Premier League clubs including Newcastle, Aston Villa, Brighton & Hove Albion and Leicester City. Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers have also shown an interest.
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