It's another case of one step forward and two steps back.
A 90th-minute winner in midweek to get the tails up before being presented with another kick in the teeth. Bristol City stood up to Millwall's physical threat but left Ashton Gate bloodied and their egos bruised with a result and performance that is becoming all too common.
Playing against Gary Rowett's system doesn't require rocket science. It's all relatively simple, defend the aerial balls into the box and you're more than likely to come away with at least a point. (Although that's obviously easy for me to say).
However, that hereby presented the problem. Defeat at Birmingham a few weeks ago highlighted the ongoing fragility of City's defending inside their own area and once again it proved costly yesterday.
When it first became noted that Millwall were heading to Ashton Gate without a victory on the road there was that sense of inevitability that it could end yesterday. Those fears were realised and it leaves the Robins heading into two away games against a rejuvenated West Brom and Reading with the pressure well and truly back on their shoulders.
Here's the talking points following a difficult day in BS3.
Time to change formation?
There was a quote from Rowett in his post-match press conference that seemed to resonate with the position City find themselves in at the moment.
The Millwall manager said: "I think the change of formation has been key for us to get bodies forward. The key to that is you still don't want to have those defensive frailties or defensive problems.
"At the moment, we look much better defensively in that formation and we have to continue to do that. It's really easy isn't it? If you're playing a back five and not defending well at some point in my mind you have to say, 'okay, do we need to do something to change it a little bit?'
"But when something is working to a point, it's hard to just chuck it away. It's really brave to chuck it away but I felt it was the right time and the players have responded with two wins and a draw and the players have looked very good defensively."
That comment - "It's really brave to chuck it away but I felt it was the right time." Is it time Pearson follows in the same footsteps and switch to a back four?
Firstly, Pearson needs to find solutions to his side's defending. He can't legislate for such glaring individual errors and it must be so infuriating for him to witness from the sidelines.
Yesterday was the ninth time in 15 league games where they've conceded two or more and while City's attacking force have been able to bail them out on plenty of occasions, their drop in form is really exposing their limitations at the back.
Opposing teams are becoming wise to the way City play. They're defending deep in blocks which prevents the front pairing from having the space to utilise their pace in behind.
Instead, City are being forced out wide with Mark Sykes and Jay Dasilva but their deliveries are largely ineffectual. It begs the question of whether the Robins are becoming too predictable.
It's only really since the international break where City have been off the boil. In the first eight or nine games, City were exciting and unpredictable to watch, looking as though they were going to score with every attack.
Now the goals are starting to dry up but the defence continues to be exposed and therefore something has to give. It's understandable why Pearson would be so reluctant to consider changing the shape, however.
He's built his side around playing in the current formation and has enjoyed plenty of success with it at times. He's worked tirelessly to tweak and develop a system that got the best out of Andi Weimann and Antoine Semenyo while Kal Naismith's arrival in the centre of defence also helps City in transition.
It also relies so heavily on wing-backs contributing in an attacking sense but Dasilva and Sykes are struggling with that final delivery considering how many crossing positions they get themselves into. Although the crux of the matter is if teams are finding solutions to the 3-4-1-2 formation then Pearson may have to start considering a plan B.
The strike partnership
City's strikers have set the bar so high over the last nine months or so that when they do have a rare dip in form, it's exasperated to an extent.
For the second successive game, Pearson opted to go with Semenyo and Tommy Conway to lead the line with Andi Weimann in his customary position behind the pair. It's difficult not to have sympathy for Nahki Wells after being left out of the starting XI again.
Wells, who won September's PFA Fan's Player of the Month on Friday, enjoyed a run of five goals in five games up until the 0-0 draw with Queens Park Rangers. He then saw 45 minutes against Birmingham before taking his seat on the substitute bench.
It's clear Conway and Semenyo don't have that same telepathy both Wells and Conway have generated. Of course, that develops with game time and the Semenyo/Conway pairing are certainly in the early stages.
Millwall dealt with the duo pretty comfortably all afternoon. City had just one shot on target with Semenyo's effort that cannoned back off the legs of the keeper midway through the second half.
Conway, for how good his breakthrough season has been, hasn't been at the races in the last two matches and particularly struggled to have an influence on proceedings yesterday. So Pearson has a decision to make for West Brom.
Does he revert back to the Wells/Conway combination that proved so effective towards the beginning of the season and use Semenyo as an impact substitute? Or does Conway need a rest which will mean Semenyo and Wells play alongside each other?
The problem with that is they didn't exactly set the world alight in the 0-0 draw against Queens Park Rangers in which the manager even said they played too far apart. Then there's the Chris Martin debate and whether he brings the band back together and opts for the old-school WSM partnership.
It's a difficult one because while Semenyo's brilliance can turn a game on its head, the three games he has started haven't contributed goals from the forwards.
Tomas Kalas returns
Only Tomas Kalas could play 29 minutes on his return from seven months out injured and require stitches above his right eye. He was introduced to the field for Timm Klose, who had shades of Terry Butcher with a botch job bandage across his head following a collision in the first half, and threw himself into the action.
It's fair to say he was understandably rusty. His first involvement saw him give the ball away when trying to clear it up the line and he followed that up with a late lunge on his opponent in which he was perhaps lucky not to see a yellow card. Although it felt as though he had waited a long time for that one.
Following that he appeared to have a clash of heads when a delivery came into the box that left blood streaming down his face. Constant visits to the touchline followed as they struggled to stem the bleeding. Welcome back to the Championship, Tomas.
It wouldn't be a fairytale return to action though after he was arguably at fault for Millwall's winner. A simple free-kick came into the air and O'Leary charges off his line and makes the call for it.
Alex Scott seemingly moves out of the way to let the keeper pluck it out of the air but Kalas comes roaring in to make the header, resulting in a mix-up which Flemming couldn't miss from. Quite an eventful half an hour on the whole.
Despite the error, it was great to see him back in the defence and his return is very timely considering the defensive record. It may be the case that it is too soon for Kalas to be starting matches but it won't be long before Pearson will have to make a decision on his backline.
Zak Vyner's performances this season have been commendable and would feel slightly harsh to drop him. Rob Atkinson has cemented his place on the left side of defence and Kal Naismith, barring his mistakes, has shown his threat both from set-pieces and his ability to play between the lines.
Timm Klose has done his chances of finding a way back into the squad little harm in the last two performances so therefore it poses a relatively welcome selection dilemma for Pearson going forward.
Cam Pring's cameo
Having been banished from the first-team for such a lengthy period towards the end of last season and the start of this one, the left wing-back looks to be starting to force his way into the manager's plans.
Kalas' return from injury meant Pearson needed to leave one name out of the squad and he opted for George Tanner, unless it was injury related, for Pring which is evidence in itself that he's slowly turning the tide after a choppy last six months in BS3.
He replaced the ineffectual Jay Dasilva on 66 minutes and immediately thrust himself into the action. He's quick and powerful and showed confidence to take on his man, something that his team-mate seems to be struggling with at the moment.
Let's not forget Dasilva was one of the most consistent performers towards the end of last season and he started this one well also. He's not the only player to have seen his form dip since the international break and much of the frustration boils down to knowing he has the ability to be more influential going forward.
Pring's cameo did his chances little harm of perhaps getting a look in over the period of games before the international break. He needed five minutes to play his part in City's equaliser when his low cross was turned into the net by Shaun Hutchinson.
There's just one niggling doubt with Pring and it could be a reason why he has seen such little football under Pearson recently and that's his decision-making. Cast your mind back to Preston away last season for a minute when City were heading for a 2-1 victory.
He made a charge up field and instead of running to the corner, lost the ball allowing Preston to break in which they scored a last-gasp equaliser. It seemed to be the turning point for Pring who quickly found himself as a peripheral figure.
Even yesterday, there was a moment in which you feel Pearson was far from happy with. Deep into stoppage time, he played a throw to Atkinson's feet instead of going into the box. City lost it and Millwall went up the other end to win a penalty.
Pearson made note of it after the game by saying: "Like the throw-in at the end. Rob's 6ft 3" and he shows for Pringy to throw a ball to his feet. It has to go in the box. It has to go in the box.
"We make these strange decisions on the pitch where if we are in front with one goal up you would expect the ball to come into the box and yet we go down a different route ourselves. I find it bizarre that we make these types of decisions."
Pearson's team selection against West Brom is likely to be telling and you feel if he doesn't dislodge Dasilva now, it's unlikely he ever will.
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