Pep Guardiola has given Kalvin Phillips some mixed messages this week. On Monday it felt as though he may not even start Manchester City's cup clash at Bristol City.
Less than two minutes into the game, after he was named in the City team, Phillips had made a good clearance and struck the bar with a fierce shot from 25 yards.
Pre-match, Pep Guardiola simply told Phillips to 'be himself', and the following performance was more like what City have been wanting from their £45m signing all season. There's still a long way to go, but this felt like Phillips being himself in a City shirt for the first time.
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Teasing the prospect of Rodri playing in the cup away at Championship opposition, days before Newcastle visit the Etihad, Guardiola told Phillips that he still has work to do to master City's system. He indicated similar at Bournemouth, after bringing the midfielder on for 35 minutes at the weekend.
If Phillips hadn't started at Bristol City, it's hard to pinpoint another game this season where Guardiola could afford to rest Rodri, and Phillips' 90 minutes at Ashton Gate account for 30 per cent of his total minutes all season. It was his first 90-minute outing at club level since May.
But unlike at Bournemouth, where he looked rusty and may have been sent off on another day, or at Southampton where he was targeted as City produced their worst performance of the season, Phillips was calm under pressure and positionally solid enough.
He was there to head clear from a couple of dangerous balls into the box, and wasn't afraid of putting a tackle in or driving forward with the ball. It was a complete opposite showing to his only previous start at Southampton.
Still, it was far from a perfect evening in Bristol. City lacked the midfield presence of Rodri still, with Rico Lewis and Bernardo Silva needed to move into midfield at various points to support Phillips. It would be fair to class Phillips' night as good, with progress made, but nothing more.
In Phillips' case, a quiet and composed performance without attracting too much attention might be exactly what was needed. After the season he's had so far, unspectacular and 'being himself' is a positive step forward.
"It's not easy when you don't play much. To play these kinds of games is not easy but he played more than well," Guardiola said after the game of Phillips. "Of course he needs rhythm but it was important to give Rodri time. We need him and we can rely on him."
Now, there is a foundation to restore some confidence to Phillips after what must have been a testing few months and some public concerns aired from his manager over how ready he is. The next time Phillips is needed, he's got a performance to build on. He, and City, will be stronger for his low-key night in Bristol.
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