A loan move that's already paying off
There is a school of thought that says you learn nothing about a goalkeeper until he is properly tested. If that is true, then Pierce Charles has already learned a great deal in the space of a fortnight.
The 21-year-old, signed from Sheffield Wednesday early in the summer window and loaned straight out to QPR, has now produced two commanding displays in the Championship. The second of those came at Fratton Park, where Charles made five saves in a 3-1 victory over Portsmouth.
It was not all plain sailing. At one point he gave the ball away in a dangerous area, the kind of moment that makes a young keeper's heart sink. His response was telling: a smart double save to atone for the error. That is the sort of resilience that tends to separate the keepers who make it from the ones who don't.
From Hillsborough to Loftus Road
Charles arrived at City with a reputation forged in difficult circumstances at Sheffield Wednesday. His performances there earned him the move back to Manchester, and the club clearly saw no reason to rush him. The Championship is a demanding schooling, and QPR is proving a useful classroom.
His QPR debut came in less glamorous surroundings: a penalty shootout defeat to Millwall in the first round of the Carabao Cup, the tie finishing 1-1 before the Hoops came up short from the spot. It was a loss, but it handed Charles his first competitive minutes. Saturday's win at Portsmouth, his second start of the season, suggested he has settled rather quickly.
It is early days, of course. Two starts do not make a career, and the Championship has a way of humbling young players. But the early signs are that City may have found themselves a keeper of the future. For a club that has spent heavily on the position in recent years, the sight of a homegrown option developing on loan is a welcome one.