Getty ImagesBristol City boss Gerhard Struber believes the Robins need more investment at all levels to end their 46-year top flight exile.
The Austrian is aware of how the “optics” of selling top stars to promotion rivals in January look to supporters after dropping off the promotion pace.
The Robins, 12th in the Championship, have slipped to seven points adrift of the top six with nine games left.
That slide has come about through a run of one win in six games, having sold nine-goal Anis Mehmeti to Ipswich and defender Zak Vyner to Wrexham in January, strengthening two promotion rivals.
Struber told BBC Sport: “The optics were not super sexy, that we lost players in this direction. The picture doesn’t look good.
“I understand our fans are frustrated because they think we made them [rivals] stronger, but we have to realise the players went in this direction and the club was open to finalising this business.
“It’s not always easy to deal with from my standpoint, but the big task is to develop players and we cannot always hold back transfers especially when we develop players so quickly.
“[Steve Lansdown, owner] is passionately committed to the club but has a business at Bristol City and this is something we have to also realise.
“At the same time I hope all together we can bring many good arguments to the table in the next few weeks that will help us and we can invest on a level that, in the end, will make the play-offs realistic.”
The Robins were last in the top flight in 1979-80 and have been in the second tier for 16 of the last 18 years.
Bristol-born businessman Lansdown has been majority shareholder since 1996 but is searching for additional investment, which could mean a full takeover.
The club held talks with Saudi sports supremo Turki Alalshikh earlier this season.
Lansdown has invested more than £280m of his own money during those 30 years and said in January the club do not have the cash to do “everything straight away.”
“The owner invests a lot of money, really big money, and to look at his perspective he may also want some money back,” added Struber.
“We’re not alone in this direction, clubs have to deal with different business models.
“When you look at different clubs, what they invest in every transfer window, it’s not always easy to stay calm, but the foundations of what the club has built here is on a high level.”
Struber, 47, replaced Liam Manning last summer after his predecessor guided the Robins to the play-offs for the first time in 17 years before losing to Sheffield United in the semi-finals.
After the departures of Mehmeti and Vyner during the winter transfer window, key trio Ross McCrorie, Max Bird and Jason Knight have one year left on their deals, raising fears of more sales. But Struber hopes to keep them.
“That would be my big wish,” said former Barnsley boss Struber.
“They are really important players and they have really good quality. They have interest from their performances of the last two years, that’s clear.
“At the same time, they know our environment and how we want to play. When they look deeper at what we want to do in the summer then I hope they will continue this project.”
The Robins suffered a 2-0 defeat at Leicester on Tuesday – the Foxes’ first win in 11 games.
Bristol City go to second-placed Middlesbrough on Saturday, then host struggling West Bromwich Albion before the international break.
Struber, who has also had a spell with Red Bull Salzburg, added: “We don’t speak so much about the play-offs, but everyone knows everything is really close and when you come on a run this can happen really quickly, that you can close the gap.
“My belief is always big.”
