We’re pretty confident in predicting that Nigel Pearson has never been a smoker nor has he probably ever worn a neckerchief or donned leather gloves. However, you’d forgive the Bristol City manager for mimicking Colonel John ‘Hannibal’ Smith, placing a lit Panetela cigar in his mouth and uttering his immortal eight-word catchphrase before breaking into a deeply satisfied smile.
We’ll refrain from debating exactly where Brian Tinnion, Phil Alexander and Sean Gilhespy sit in the B.A.-Face-Murdock dynamic but quite clearly the Robins’ early summer recruitment plan has very much come together over the last two weeks - just nine days, in fact, with Haydon Roberts expected to be confirmed as their third new arrival shortly, after Ross McCrorie and Rob Dickie.
In that period of time the Robins have brought in a proven Championship performer in Dickie, an emerging international approaching his peak in McCrorie and a hugely talented former England youth international in Roberts who showed enough on loan at Derby County, along with his progress at Brighton & Hove Albion, to indicate he’s a very exciting young talent with an exceptionally high potential ceiling.
