Nigel Pearson was blunt in his response when asked whether he needed a defensive midfielder.
The Bristol City manager, who had just watched his team fall to a 2-1 home defeat to Birmingham last month, replied: "Yeah, well we don’t really have any at the football club. We don’t have any."
The truth of the matter is, City haven't really had a genuine, orthodox defensive midfielder since Marlon Pack left for Cardiff on deadline day in 2019, with Lee Johnson reluctant to let his trusted lieutenant leave but with an offer that was simply too good for the club to refuse.