Championship side Bristol City have admitted that they are using drone technology in training to help in their bid to avoid the drop to League One.
Manager Lee Johnson is using a drone in their training sessions to develop tactical awareness amongst his playing squad.
City operating chief Mark Ashton told the Bristol Post that “Lee now uses a drone in training. The drone hovers above the boys when they are training and gives us new camera angles.”
“It is an example of how to use technology to come up with a different way of coaching boys and showing them what they need to do. Lee has used a drone since he came in, it is very simple, but it works.
“Lee and I are looking at this data system and saying ‘we’d like some of this.’ We believe you have to balance the objective with the subjective. You need eyes on the ground and trusted people who can watch players, But that has to be supported by data.
“The technology we were shown is used for match analysis and player analysis and is very clever. This industry is evolving and we have to move with it. Our challenge is to create a learning environment in an attempt to make ourselves better.”
Everton manager Roberto Martinez also used the technology in his Premier League training sessions, also claiming that it gave his coaching staff and players a new camera angle to assess their tactical positioning.
Bristol City’s position in the league has improved drastically since Johnson’s appointment in early February. City recorded an impressive 6-0 victory against the Championship’s basement club Bolton Wanderers last weekend.
In their last ten fixtures, Lee Johnson’s side have won five, drawn one and lost four, results that mean that they now sit six points clear of Milton Keynes Dons in the final relegation spot.
