There are times when managers speak and you need to read between the lines and interpret a subtle message.
But this was not the case when John Mousinho spoke about Harvey Blair this week.
He said: "If all goes well with Harvey then we'll probably be looking at the Millwall game [21 February] but there's no point again in us registering Harvey [this week] because he's broken down so many times."
Pompey opted to leave three spaces in their 25-man EFL squad to give flexibility.
Josh Knight was left out but he won't return until April at the earliest, Florian Bianchini is also injured and would likely have returned to Swansea in January if Pompey had the option to end his loan.
Blair on the other hand is potentially 10 days away from featuring. Certainly sooner than Conor Shaughnessy and Josh Murphy who were both named in the 25-man squad.
It feels like a vital few months for 22-year-old Blair's Portsmouth career. He clearly has the physical attributes and the technical qualities required to succeed in the Championship. He was worth a gamble at £300,000 from Liverpool 18 months ago. But he now needs to get - and stay - fit.
He's made just 19 league appearances since joining the Blues in August 2024.
Injuries have been the bane of Pompey's life again this season but Blair is a likeable individual who can count Mo Salah among his friends. He clearly has a point to prove to Mousinho but he needs to be available for selection in order to do so.