When Nigel Pearson was talking about his summer recruitment, he emphasised the need for new arrivals to produce a grittiness and gutsy performance to help propel them up the league.
Seething following a 3-1 defeat at Swansea, after City had thrown away a 1-0 lead, Pearson said: "What I’m not having is, I’m not having players who cop-out. This football club has had too long putting up with players that are just going through the motions at times."
While other Championship managers were still getting their houses in order, Pearson wasted little time in making his move by bringing a player through the door in Oxford United's Mark Sykes.
