Nigel Pearson has confirmed former Cardiff City defender Sol Bamba is training with Bristol City for the next fortnight but insists there are “no promises” over whether the experienced centre-back will earn a contract or not.
As reported by Bristol World, free agent Bamba joined the rest of the Robins squad at the High Performance Centre on Monday with Pearson in need of another defender for the forthcoming campaign.
Pearson has worked with the Ivorian at Leicester City, where he had been signed by predecessor Sven Goran Eriksson, and also took him on trial at Derby County before his premature dismissal at Pride Park in 2016.
Bamba is a vastly experienced figure in the Championship with 426 senior appearances for PSG, Hibernian, Leicester, Leeds and the Bluebirds and played 29 games for Middlesbrough last term.
“Sol’s in the building for a couple of weeks to get fit and then we’ll see where it goes,” Pearson said, in the wake of City's 2-0 win over Luton Town. “I like him, he’s a good man, he’s a very positive character who’s got great game understanding but no promises - he’s here to train and if something else happens then I’ll let you know when it does.
“Sol’s not here under any pretence of coming here for a contract. I’ve done it before with a few players, they’re out of contract at places and you give them the opportunity to get fit in a club training environment. Sometimes it’s nice to help people out.”
As he’s a free agent, there’s no reason for City to rush into a decision over whether to offer Bamba a short-term contract but it would continue a theme for the club of bringing in veteran defenders during the season.
In 2019/20, Ashley Williams was signed by Lee Johnson, the following campaign saw Adrian Mariappa arrive under Dean Holden, while Timm Klose was a January pick-up as Pearson’s defensive ranks were depleted.
Bamba is an immensely popular figure in the game, particularly at Cardiff City where he was a totemic figure in the heart of their defence during the 2017/18 promotion campaign and further endeared himself to the wider football community following his battle with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2021.
“He’s dealt with some personal setbacks,” Pearson added. “His smile is as big as he is. He’s a very positive chap.”
Pearson’s back three has remained the same throughout all four Championship fixtures with Kal Naismith joined by Zak Vyner and Rob Atkinson but beyond that trio, Pearson has Klose as his only fit senior defender with Tomas Kalas seemingly no closer to a first-team return. City host Cardiff in the Severnside Derby at Ashton Gate on Saturday.
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