Wearing the No5, Sol Bamba entered the field with a huge grin on his face in what is presumably his first taste of action since coming on in the 89th minute in Middlesbrough's 3-1 win over Stoke just over four months ago.
What his surprise appearance suggests remains to be seen with the transfer market closing late on Thursday but there was a sense of intrigue about his performance and fitness with Nigel Pearson and Richard Gould watching on from the High Performance Centre.
Pearson wants a right-sided defender in the window but Bamba started in the middle of a back three with City's two highly-rated centre-backs in Joe Low and Ryley Towler on either side of him. Similar to Kal Naismith's role in the first team, Bamba was the deepest of the three.
After going around his team-mates shaking their hands moments before kick-off the game was underway and it was instantly notable how vocal he was. "Step up" echoed around the ground just seconds into the game as City looked to play a high-pressing game, keen to limit Birmingham's time on the ball.
He was marking Kieran Wakefield in a matchup similar to a David vs Goliath battle. Samba was never going to lose the physical or aerial duel and at the age of 37, he also had experience on his side, knowing when to step forward or let his man have the ball.
Bamba had that aura of authority at the back and the first sign of any long ball forward, he collected on his chest before feeding it out to Low. At his age, pace would always be a lingering question mark, especially against his youthful opponents but there wasn't a time when he was found running towards his own goal - again, another sign of his experience coming to the fore of knowing where to be on the pitch.
His strength to keep his opponents at arm's length with relative ease raised a wry smile and he clattered into the back of Adam George to win a header forward. Although there were clear signs that he was understandably rusty, particularly with the ball at his feet.
After 13 minutes he attempted a pass out wide to the right to Harry Leeson who was looking to get forward but he sliced his effort and it was well mopped up by Low who somehow managed to bring it under control. Another pass forward looking for Marley Rose failed to find his intended target. It was at that moment he started to look frustrated with himself.
In the 25th minute, he lost possession in the middle of the park, allowing Birmingham to break forward but he escaped unpunished He then almost had a mix-up with keeper Harvey Wiles-Richards at the back when the duo seemed to go for the same pass which eventually allowed Wakefield to pick up the ball in a dangerous area.
At half-time, he played another wayward pass out of play and his first 45 minutes were a combination of parts good and bad. He made a great block against Adam George on the edge of the area but he looked frustrated with himself as he headed off the field.
Bamba would play another 20 minutes of the second half before being replaced by Callum Wood and although there were glimpses of the quality that has seen him play in over 420 matches across seven leagues, it was also clear he was rusty - especially with his passing.
Although his job was entirely over following his substitution, you could still hear him applauding and shouting instructions from the bench as City looked to break the deadlock in the contest.
Whether he signs or not could depend on how the next couple of days develop. Pearson is expecting a quiet window unless a large offer comes in for the likes of Antoine Semenyo or Alex Scott and then he'll have to move quickly to bring in a couple of his targets.
He admitted on Monday that he wants a central defender and a left-sided player and if City fail to bring anyone through the door, then that could force Pearson's hand to offer him a short-term contract as a backup or even in some sort of coaching capacity. Although the manager may want to see him feature in a few more youth games before making a final decision because there are certainly some cobwebs to dust off.
SIGN UP: For our daily Robins newsletter, bringing you the latest from Ashton Gate
READ NEXT
