Nigel Pearson certainly won't be sitting in his office at the High Performance Centre until 11pm watching Jim White wearing his yellow tie on Sky Sports News.
For the Bristol City manager, there would be few things less enjoyable than tracking all the done deals across the leagues but he will at least hope to have a couple of new faces among his ranks when he comes into training on Wednesday morning.
Whether you like or loathe transfer deadline day and the media circus that surrounds potential incomings and outgoings, the January window does provide an opportunity for clubs to transform their season whether it be making desperate attempts to emerge from a relegation battle or achieving promotion.
From a City perspective, seven games undefeated in all competitions and a string of consistent performances have certainly eased any fears of dropping into League One. However, there is still the desire to reduce the wage bill and make the club more sustainable in the transfer market.
Dan Bentley's move to Wolves and Antoine Semenyo's to Bournemouth are two examples of that while goalkeeper Nikita Haikin has been the only arrival on a free transfer after leaving Norwegian club Bodo/Glimt at the beginning of the month - with more set to follow.
There's no doubt City's squad is on the thin side and a few injuries will leave a few breaking out into a nervous sweat therefore adding to the squad, particularly in forward areas, needs to be a priority for what happens over the course of the next 16 hours.
Recently, City's January deadline day business has been very quiet. Nothing happened last year following Timm Klose's arrival earlier in the window while Henri Lansbury joined the year prior on January 29. It could be very, very different this time around with a few unanswered questions as we look towards the transfer state of play heading into the final day of the window.
The notable departures
Han-Noah Massengo's deal to Auxerre was completed last night and his exit has proven a sad but welcome relief for all those involved. Pearson couldn't have been any clearer in his stance that the Frenchman was unlikely to play for the club again having decided against extending his deal - the move back to France confirms that.
With academy prospects Dylan Kadji and Omar Taylor-Clarke moving ahead in the pecking order, it's been a sorry sight to see Massengo featuring regularly for the Under-21s while waiting for a club to offer him that City escape route.
As the prospect of remaining in BS3 until the summer loomed until his contract expired, Ligue 1 side Auxerre prepared to offer him a new lease of life with the deal announced on Monday evening. While a hugely popular character among certain quarters of the City fanbase, his departure remains the best course of action for all parties and a chance for Massengo to enjoy his football again.
Elsewhere in the squad, there are question marks hanging over the heads of Timm Klose and Chris Martin ahead of the 11pm deadline. Both players are free to leave having fallen out of favour in Pearson's plans and while there have been a few tentative enquiries, the latest on Thursday was that there had been nothing concrete for either.
Klose has been in discussions with City and that always raises the possibility of the mutual termination of his contract, especially if the club can bring in a new central defender (more on that later). With the Swiss on a free, it means he doesn't have to secure a new club imminently and can plot his next move - if there is to be one - for beyond the deadline.
With regards to Martin, there have been a few links with a move to League One on loan but that could go down to the wire. Pearson was asked about the possibility of their exits last week to which he responded: "One or two bits of interest but nothing's happened as it stands. It's very much as it was, we'll see what happens in the last throws of another window."
Just because there's a desire to move the veteran on, doesn't mean it'll definitely happen and ultimately he remains under contract.
Three through the door?
It might be a little chilly to send anyone up onto the Ashton Gate roof at the moment but hopefully, City have other tricks up their sleeve for any potential arrivals coming through the door today.
Starting with a new forward and specifically the chase for Harry Cornick, Pearson will hope he can bolster his ranks in attack following Antoine Semenyo's departure to Bournemouth at the end of last week.
The 27-year-old Luton man remains an option and judging by Head Coach Rob Edwards' comments in the wake of their FA Cup draw with Grimsby, there's every possibility he could follow in the footsteps of Kal Naismith by swapping Kenilworth Road for Ashton Gate.
When asked about his future, he didn't rule out a potential departure and said: "There is interest there, but what I will say on it is Corns is someone I admire, I love working with him.
“He’s a good footballer, we're going to have interest in some of our players. What I have to stress now is that I believe we will be in a really good position come the end of this window. I don’t know exactly what will happen, but the club’s ambitious, I’m ambitious."
On the surface of it, Cornick ticks all the boxes. With a contract expiring in the summer, he will come cheaply, he's versatile across the front three, has Championship experience to instantly hit the ground running and fits into Pearson's criteria of a player who plays with high intensity.
There's one obstacle in Swansea who could look to upset the apple cart. They have an interest, although not thought to be as intense as City's, but their decision to allow Michael Obafemi to join Burnley may encourage their chase for his replacement.
City could pull off one of the coups of the window in Wycombe's attacking midfielder Anis Mehmeti. Pearson has been in the market for a maverick and according to The Telegraph's Mike McGrath, it looks like he has got his wish.
The 22-year-old is one of the most technically gifted players in the EFL. He's scored nine and assisted three in League One this season on the back of seven goals in 23 starts last campaign. The two clubs have reportedly agreed a fee and Mehmeti is set to complete a medical today ahead of a permanent deal.
At the other end of the pitch, Crystal Palace's 21-year-old defender Jake O'Brien could also be heading to the club. He is currently on loan with Belgium side RWD Molenbeek but City want him to spend the second half of the season in BS3 with a view to a permanent deal.
He was mightily impressive during a loan spell with Swindon last season and his potential move to City will be with one eye towards the future, especially given the uncertainty over Tomas Kalas' future as he approaches the end of his contract.
A Sky Blue reunion?
Reports on Monday suggested Jay Dasilva could be set for a potential exit with Coventry looking to bring him to the CBS Arena. There, he would team up with former team-mate Kasey Palmer and ex-Chelsea youth coach Adi Viveash who is assistant manager to Mark Robins.
It's certainly plausible based on numerous factors listed below, but ultimately, it will come down to whether City can find a replacement. There's a lot of moving parts involved before a deal can go through.
Dasilva left the field to two big embraces from Nigel Pearson and Curtis Fleming on Saturday which would have fuelled rumours among conspiracy theorists that he has played his last game for City. As for the other reasons for his exit, his contract expires at the end of the season and he is one of the top earners in the squad with the necessity to trim the wage bill.
Cam Pring's form in the last month or two has also seen Dasilva lose his place in the starting XI but as proven in the victory over West Brom at the weekend, he is still an important and reliable member of the team when called upon.
As late last week, the understanding was that despite interest in the division, he hadn't been in talks with Championship clubs over a potential departure but something appears to have changed over the weeked. Yesterday, reports circulated that City had two bids rejected for AFC Wimbeldon's 21-year-old left-back Jack Currie.
The League Two club are in no rush to sell having already allowed Ayoub Assal to Qatari club Al-Wakrah SC for around £1.2m while Jack Rudoni left for Huddersfield in the summer for around £800,000. The Dons are financially in a healthy position and as they sit three points adrift of the play-offs, will want to keep their key players until at least the summer.
City are proceeding with caution with the funds available despite the cash raised from Semenyo's sale and therefore won't pay over the odds for a transfer target. If AFC Wimbledon stand firm in their valuation, Dasilva will likely remain a Robin until the end of the season at least because there isn't a natural back-up to Pring.
Admittedly, Kal Naismith could play out on that side, as could George Tanner or Kane Wilson but all would be featuring away from their familiar and natural positions.
Young guns out on loan
Given the talent in City's academy, there's always the prospect of players heading out on temporary deals. Joe Low and Stefan Bajic are two youngsters to leave this month to Walsall and Valenciennes respectively.
Given the lack of depth in the squad, Pearson will be reluctant to let maybe of his youngsters leave, if any. Midfielder Dylan Kadji could be one who may head to the Football League as he awaits another opportunity with the first-team.
The 19-year-old hasn't featured since the cup defeat to Lincoln and has been out of the squad in ten of the last 13 league matches. His academy team-mate and fellow midfielder Omar Taylor-Clarke made his first-team debut in the FA Cup victory over Swansea earlier this month and earned more minutes in Saturday's win over West Brom.
Based on that alone, it seems more likely that Kadji could head out over Taylor-Clarke for the second time in his City career following a stint with Bath City during the 2020/21 campaign.
Other names that could head out include defender Callum Wood and striker Seb Palmer-Houlden, both of whom are expected to move to National League sides should they be allowed to leave.
The longshots
Heaven forbid but given Alex Scott's quality and performance on Saturday, you can never discount the possibility of a Premier League club coming in and flexing their muscle. Half a dozen are believed to be interested, with Wolves the latest big name linked with a £20million transfer.
With Semenyo already heading to the top flight for an initial £9million, it would have to be a massive bid for City to even consider selling their star asset today particularly as it will leave them with just hours to find a much-needed replacement.
Add to the fact Scott is more than happy to continue his development at City until at least the end of the season and it would be a real kick to the gut should the England Under-20 man find his way to the Premier League.
The same could be said for Tommy Conway and while there will be admirers and scouts watching his progress, a serious hamstring injury has almost certainly ruled him out of any move if a club were even considering coming forward.
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