Alex Scott is licking his lips at the opportunity to forge a partnership alongside Anis Mehmeti after the January signing impressed in his full debut in the draw against Wigan.
The 22-year-old deadline day signing started on the left side of the attacking three and showed glimpses of his exciting talent, including the quality of his delivery for Rob Atkinson's goal. The game needed a spark of magic with Wigan keen to frustrate the hosts and Mehmeti provided that just after the half-hour mark.
Collecting a short free-kick, he fronted his defender and moved the ball onto his right foot before digging out a pinpoint cross. Atkinson couldn't miss from six-yards to score his fourth goal of the season.
Coming into a new side, it can take a while to gel with combinations and intricate passes in the final third and Pearson was constantly giving him instruction throughout the first half to help encourage him to play wider.
He drifted in and out of the game at times but there were no question marks surrounding his confidence. His quick feet and ability to breeze past opponents offered plenty of encouraging signs that he can be the difference between one and three points.
In the second half, he came within inches of settling the contest when his cross towards the back post came back off the inside of the far post moments after Alex Scott hit the bar with his header. It was a sign of things to come for the rest of the season with the duo ready to turn entertainers in a bid to climb the table for the final 15 games of the season.
Speaking ahead of the game, Scott described his new team-mate as special and admitted the prospect of them building that rapport on the pitch could lead to something special. He said: "He's a special player from what I've seen.
"I think even on the first day when he came in and we saw a bit of each other in ourselves in the way we dribble. We're very similar, I think he's a lot more direct. He will dribble at you and make you look silly.
"Obviously, his finishing is ridiculous and that's definitely to come. The fans can be excited by that. He's a great lad off the pitch and in the past few days we're building a good relationship together and that will only help us on the pitch.
"I think we've got that bit of respect to try stuff on the pitch together. He's an exciting player who the fans are obviously going to enjoy watching."
The duo almost combined in the first half to open the scoring when Mehmeti picked up the ball on the left. He picked out Scott's run from deep inside the area but the 19-year-old just couldn't get the ball out of his feet to grab his second of the season.
After the game, Pearson was encouraged by Mehmeti's debut and spoke of the impact he can have on games which they need to show some creativity to unlock defences. The City manager said: "I'm sure he'll be a very good signing for us over a sustained period of time. He's a young player, he's come in and adapted well.
"He's capable of playing in the two positions he played in tonight, plus more. He played on the left, and played in the No10 position when Alex came off.
"He's versatile and he's creative. You need players to be able to create moments of magic in games that are dull. He’s a really bright player, what you need to do then is you want your full-backs to be really advanced and I thought tonight we were a little bit reticent in full-back positions to be as positive as we had been. But again you have to give your opponents a bit of credit for that.”
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