Steve Schumacher today left City with a message for his detractors: Please don't blame me for relegation.

The spiky midfielder has not been offered a new deal as the decks are cleared for Stuart McCall's arrival at the helm.

Schumacher was a regular in his three years at the club, although he fell out with some fans after gesturing at the crowd on the day City went down.

But he said: "I've enjoyed it totally. I played 130 games and in the two seasons when I've been injury-free I've become second leading goalscorer, which is a good feat from midfield.

"But the last couple of weeks were hard with the fans getting on my back.

"Maybe I became a scapegoat for us going down. There were other players who didn't come in for a bit of the criticism I got who might have.

"I hope the fans won't just remember me for that and will look back and see that I always tried 100 per cent in every game.

"The majority of fans have been great, especially the away ones. To travel every week and watch a side that have struggled was a great effort."

City's decision not to offer a new deal means they cannot claim any compensation when Schumacher moves, even though he is under 24.

He added: "I was a bit surprised because I didn't think they would let me go for free.

"I don't think it was a case of not wanting me here but maybe they didn't want to take the gamble of a new contract on the wages I was on and then nobody else coming in.

"I'm disappointed that I won't be playing for Bradford again, especially with Stuart McCall coming. He is the main choice of the fans and I've no doubt he will do a good job.

"I remember watching him playing for Everton and he is the type of character they probably need to bounce back."

Marc Bridge-Wilkinson, Richard Edghill and Xavier Barrau have also been released.

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