At half-time, when City were trailing 2-0 to Lincoln following that dismal first 45 minutes, thoughts were cast back to before the international break.
City were genuinely one of the most exciting teams to watch in the league. Scoring goals for fun and leaking them too (some things never change) but they had a swagger and confidence about them that suggested they had an outside chance of being in and around the top six.
Heck, they even went into third after beating Blackburn away from home who now sit second in the Championship. Those performances feel like a lifetime ago as a defeat to their League One opponents cranked up the pressure on Nigel Pearson.
While City drop worryingly close to the drop zone in the league, at least a cup run could have raised spirits. A place in the last 16 awaited and a golden chance to draw one of the big boys in the hope of causing a famous upset.
As Lincoln came into the contest on the back of an FA Cup defeat against Chippenham on Saturday, there was no harm in feeling dangerously optimistic about getting the job done on home soil. That lasted all of six minutes when Matty Virtue rippled the net from distance.
It would only get worse from then on and the eight changes Pearson made, including handing a debut to Stefan Bajic and a full debut to academy product Joe Low, only highlighted the frailties City have with their lack of squad depth.
Here's the talking points on a miserable evening in BS3.
A jibe at Timm
It was a damning indictment on Timm Klose that Pearson opted to take him off at half-time in favour of dropping midfielder Andy King into the centre of the defensive three.
City needed to change something and it was little surprise to see Low replaced after a difficult debut but when Klose also failed to emerge, it was assumed Pearson had opted to change formation to try and get City back into the contest.
As it turns out, that wasn't the case with Klose substituted because of his performance in the opening 45 minutes. The Swiss veteran looked off the pace from the first whistle but he certainly wasn't the only one.
If he could, Pearson may have wanted to substitute the lot at half-time but Klose fell victim having struggled to deal with the pace of Lincoln's frontman. He was also sloppy in possession including a pass that left Low short.
In Klose's defence, he has struggled with knee injuries and was dealing with a personal matter last month. At the age of 34, he's fast approaching the end of his career with the player admitting himself retirement was an option in the summer.
Judging by last night and Pearson's comments in the aftermath of the game, it raises a debate as to whether we'll see much more of him going forward this season depending on availability.
The manager said: "The fact that I leave Andy King on at centre-back says everything, doesn’t it? Kingy is visible, he’ll have the ball, he’ll organise. Others didn’t do that.”
Without naming Klose, he also bemoaned his players for failing to protect Low and added: "What annoys me about it is that he wasn’t helped out on the field by his teammates. He was constantly given slow passes which invite people to press him. It’s infuriating really, so just from his perspective it’s a difficult night, but he’ll be okay.
"It’s not necessarily long-term damage but I was hopeful that Joe could have a positive experience tonight. But to do that you need players around him with more experience to help out and that didn’t happen really.”
Rewind to after the Sheffield United defeat when Klose was left on the bench following a return from illness. When Pearson was asked how close he was to selecting him, the manager responded: "No, because he's been out of form too. We don't have defenders who are reliable at the moment."
There's no doubt Klose's arrival last January improved City's defence and helped plug a gap and he offers a positive influence around the dressing room. But if you reflect on Pearson's recent comments, it seems a long way back for Klose.
A harsh lesson
There was a sense of intrigue and excitement when the team news was released at 6:45pm. Bajic was handed his first appearance while Low was handed his full senior debut.
There's no shying away from it, the 20-year-old defender had a really difficult evening. It's worth noting that for the Under-21s this season, he has predominantly played in the middle of a back three where he can drop a few yards deeper and limit the space behind.
He lined up on the right and had a couple of understandable nervy moments early on with a few misplaced passes. Just 15 minutes into the game and he would have wanted the ground to swallow him up.
He dwelled on the ball and was robbed in possession - next thing you know and City were 2-0 behind. His confidence seemed to hit the floor which wasn't helped by a minority of supporters booing when he lost the ball.
Andi Weimann also appeared to be the only team-mate to go over to him after the error in an attempt to pick him up.
A rash tackle on the touchline resulted in a yellow card and he was then beaten for pace which allowed another dangerous cross to come in from the left. It was a difficult watch and it's impossible not to have sympathy for him.
But it goes to show the gulf in class between playing in the U21s to a consistently high standard and making the step up to this level. He'll come back from it and Pearson referenced Ryley Towler's similar showing at home to Millwall last season when he was taken off at half-time.
He said: "He’ll be okay, he’ll come back from it. He’s a decent player, he’s made good progress but unfortunately tonight he’s had a difficult experience.
"If you remember back to last year with Ryley Towler, he had a difficult afternoon against Millwall, Ryley’s doing great now on loan at Wimbledon. It’s not necessarily long-term damage but I was hopeful that Joe could have a positive experience tonight."
What is also worth mentioning, and I touched upon it above regarding Klose, but he wasn't given the support of his team-mates. Mark Sykes was also guilty of not providing enough defensive cover to leave him exposed.
Sam Bell had an equally chastening experience at home to Birmingham last season when he started at right wing-back and came off at half-time. Low will bounce back but tonight was a tough learning curve and one which he can hopefully benefit from in the long-term.
How a bad night got even worse
A cup run is all well and good but the Championship is the bread and butter and the league table this morning does not make for pretty reading. City had a game in hand over their rivals with most of those being played last night.
While City were being handed a harsh reality check against Lincoln, the teams below them in the table were picking up points. The Robins started the day in 16th position and ended up in 20th - just three points adrift of the drop zone.
Stoke, Rotherham, Middlesbrough and Hull all picked up victories and moved ahead of City while Huddersfield, rooted to the foot of the Championship, also grabbed a surprise win away at Queens Park Rangers.
West Brom, who occupy the final relegation spot, also have a game in hand having won their last two matches under new boss Carlos Corberan. City are now feeling the effects of picking up just nine points in their last 10 matches with only Reading and Wigan taking less.
Pearson now has to prepare his side to take on Watford on Saturday ahead of what's going to be a very welcome three-week break. There's no doubt City are in relegation form and the pressure on the manager and players heading into the weekend has been turned up a notch.
After last night's showing, tough and ruthless decisions will need to be made with his team selection. Those who were out of the side such as Max O'Leary, Cam Pring, Conway and Nahki Wells - their stock in Pearson's plans will have risen following a whole host of inept performances.
It's difficult to justify either Mark Sykes or Jay Dasilva starting again at the weekend with both players struggling for form which means that, depending on availability, Pring could move to wing-back while Weimann may also be back out on the right.
Where does Pearson go from here? Well, it's a topic of debate that is driving opinion after that defeat. Some of it is likely to be knee-jerk while others are genuinely worried that City could face relegation if this continues.
The manager is fully aware of his win percentage 29% (according to Mark Carter's last tweet) and City's inability to stop conceding soft goals ultimately comes down to the manager. On the flip side to that, he's been down to the bare bones in defence with Kal Naismith and Tomas Kalas out while - and forgive us if you think we're clutching at straws - City are just eight points away from the playoffs.
Judgements can be rash after a cup game where eight changes are made but you feel the type of reaction Pearson gets from his players on Saturday could prove telling.
SIGN UP: For our daily Robins newsletter, bringing you the latest from Ashton Gate
READ NEXT
