Birmingham City Appoint Garry Monk As Their New Head Coach

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Championship strugglers Birmingham City have appointed Garry Monk as their new manager following the dismissal of Steve Cotterill on Saturday. The former Middlesbrough manager has been handed a three-and-a-half year deal with the west Midlands outfit, and he has the task of getting the club out of the relegation zone.

A statement on the club’s official website read: “The club is delighted to announce the appointment of Garry Monk as our new manager.He will be assisted by Pep Clotet, James Beattie and Darryl Flahavan. Sean Rush joins Monk’s backroom staff as Head of Performance and Ryan Needs comes in as Head of Analysis.After talks today, Monk has signed a three-and-a-half year contract.Assistant Manager Clotet, First Team Coach Beattie and Goalkeeper Coach Flahavan have also agreed contracts until the summer of 2021.”
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Steve Cotterill Happy with Birmingham’s Win over Burton Albion

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Birmingham City were able to get a crucial victory over Burton Albion in the FA Cup to reach the fourth round of the competition. Sam Gallagher came up with the only goal of the game in the 56th minute to provide a victory for Birmingham at the St Andrew’s stadium. The Birmingham team were coming into the game with a recent run of good form, which appears to be essential to the club getting out of the drop zone in the next couple of weeks. However, this task is made difficult by the distraction of the FA Cup. Any disappointing result in this competition’s early rounds may have a spill on effect. Hence, manager Steve Cotterill was extremely keen on getting a win over Burton Albion, as Birmingham had been relatively treated kindly in the draw for the third round.

Cotterill will now be hoping that his team come up against a top outfit in the latter stages of the competition. After the game, the manager admitted that it was extremely important for him to retain the momentum of the squad. Hence, he decided not to make any significant changes to the starting line-up, which has performed well in recent weeks. Apart from the victory, the result also provided the third consecutive clean sheet for the team. Cotterill says that this helps Birmingham build on the recent form.
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Roberts pleads with fans to stay with the team

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Birmingham City defender Marc Roberts with the St Andrews faithful to ‘stick with us’ after a backlashes from fans following the 2-0 defeat to Barnsley on Saturday which sent the Blues into the bottom three of the Championship.

Roberts admitted the fans had every right to be frustrated and said the players take a collective blame for the club’s poor form so far this season.
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Harry Redknapp: Birmingham City can hide behind their hamstring curse

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Birmingham City boss Harry Redknapp has insisted that the Blues cannot hide behind their hamstring curse as they continue their search for the first win of the campaign.


The west Midlands club have had their attacking options depleted with the likes of Jota and Che Adams having suffered muscular injuries whilst Isaac Vassell won’t be fit to start after having recovered from his own hamstring niggle.

Despite this, Redknapp says whoever plays should provide the goals as they look to climb out of the drop zone in the early stage of the season. Preston North End are their next opponents over the weekend, and the manager knows that they have a tough task on hand with the Lilywhites, who possess the best defence in the division.

He said: “They are very strong defensively, they have done a great job and we need goals, we are short of goals so we need to find goals from somewhere on Saturday for sure. We have got great support, I think they know the importance of the win. They are not silly, they look at the players we have brought in and they know there is some quality there. But they know that three of them who are going to be massive players for the club in the future are not fit to start.” Continue reading “Harry Redknapp: Birmingham City can hide behind their hamstring curse” →

Birmingham taking their time in new boss choice

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On the surface, it seemed like the dream ticket. When Henry James “Harry” Redknapp was appointed the manager of Birmingham City back in April, most Blues fans could already sense their team was back on the right path to the promised land of the Premier League.

Despite Redknapp’s vast experience at most levels of the footballing pyramid, the former manager of Bournemouth, West Ham, Portsmouth (twice), Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Queens Park Rangers along with a brief spell in international management as the boss of Jordan, the popular 70-year-old has been cast to the managerial scrapheap, likely to be for the final time. Continue reading “Birmingham taking their time in new boss choice” →

Harry Redknapp hints Birmingham City could sign Sebastien Bassong

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Birmingham City boss Harry Redknapp has confirmed that Sebastien Bassong is training with the Blues in order to improve his overall fitness.


The Cameroon international was released from Norwich City earlier this summer after making over 120 appearances across all competitions for the club.

Redknapp is currently in the hunt for a new central defender but has cooled his interest in Aden Flint after seeing two bids rebuffed by Bristol City. Bassong has previously worked with the 70-year-old at Tottenham Hotspur, and the manager hints that he could be the answer, if he proves his fitness.

“He’s on a free, he’s a good lad and a good player who played for me at Tottenham. He was player of the year at Norwich two years ago and he’s still a very good player in my opinion,” he said. Meanwhile, the west Midlands side have significantly bolstered their full-backs positions with the signings of Carl Jenkinson and Cohen Bramall on season-long loans from Arsenal. Continue reading “Harry Redknapp hints Birmingham City could sign Sebastien Bassong” →

Bardsley might move to Birmingham

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There are media reports that Stoke City player Phil Bardsley might be moving to midlands rivals Birmingham City, or possibly even newly promoted Newcastle United. The player missed loads of games last season through injury, and it appears that he is no longer part of the team’s plan.

However, both Birmingham City and Newcastle United have denied that they made any offers for the player and that they are currently investigating different options. Continue reading “Bardsley might move to Birmingham” →

Birmingham City eyeing move for Newcastle United centre-back

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Championship side Birmingham City are lining up an approach for Newcastle United defender Grant Hanley, who could be sold after Newcastle United’s promotion to the top flight.


The former Blackburn Rovers graduate was largely used as backup to the first-team as the Magpies clinched promotion to the Premier League in the first coming. The 25-year-old will undoubtedly want regular playing time for next season, and the Tynesiders are open to offers for their central defender.

League rivals Derby, Sheffield Wednesday and Aston Villa are also monitoring the situation of Hanley, but Harry Redknapp could use his experience to his advantage in order to lure the Scotland international to St Andrew’s. The experienced head coach managed to turn the club’s fortunes in the dying stages of the campaign to keep them in the Championship last term, and he is now eyeing a tilt for promotion with the Midlands club.

Coincidentally, Redknapp was in charge of Tottenham Hotspur who downed the Blues from the Premier League back in the 2010-11 season, and they have since lingered with the relegation zone rather than fighting for the playoff positions. Hanley has been a regular mid-table player in the Championship, and he could be the perfect fit for the club, who no longer have the lanky Krystian Bielik to depend upon. The Arsenal defender played a key role in the defence during his six-month loan stint, but he now appears to be heading to Norwich City on a year-long loan deal. Continue reading “Birmingham City eyeing move for Newcastle United centre-back” →

REDKNAPP WANTS NEW STRIKER

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Birmingham City FC manager Harry Redknapp is reportedly keen on signing a new striker this summer.


He wants the star player of his former club Queens Park Rangers, Conor Washington. Washington, 25, joined in the winter window last year from League One outfit Peterborough. He scored 33 goals in 94 matches to earn the move.

Washington netted nine times in Ian Holloway’s team, helping them overcome the threat of relegation. Redknapp has identified him as a player that can contribute significantly to the firepower of the team. He was part of the Northern Ireland side that lost to the semi-final reaching Welsh counterparts at Euro 2016. He has ten caps on the international stage and seems to be a good addition to Birmingham.

Redknapphas also been linked with former Tottenham striker Robbie Keane and Peter Crouch. Eleven players left the club last year and the manager is already working on setting up his own personnel.

Redknapp might bring back Benoit Assou-Ekotto to St Andrews as there seems to be a bond between the pair. It is surprising that with Cheick Keita and Jonathan Grounds, the coach still wants Assou-Ekotto. The player was a regular under the manager whilst the pair was at White Hart Lane. It seems the bond is playing a strong role in his return to the club.

With the player acquired by former managers, Redknapp would likely reduce them and bring his own. For now Paul Robinson, Craig Gardner, Adam Legzdins and Tomasz Kusczak are sure to remain next season while he recruits fresh legs.

BIRMINGHAM CITY – ZOLA CHANGED TOO MUCH TOO QUICK?

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Coach Gianfranco Zola has not actually made quite the impact that greeted his announcement as Blues boss.


Looking back did the coach try to change too much in such a short space? Zola would need to utilize the forthcoming preseason very well with the team to help them understand his philosophies rather than impose them too quickly.

For now Zola would need to get the result against Derby County and against former coach Gary Rowett. With the calibre of players at the club, Zola should have been more strategic in tweaking things up. Before now the Blues team were more balanced. They sat back when required and hit oppositions on counters but now they try to dominate and keep up the pressure upfront all the time without managing the situation well.

These moves by Zola seem to have affected the team. City need to have concrete plans in place. There is no need for the regular change in managers and always doling outmoney at every given opportunity. The club needs to have a long term mindset, develop the right philosophies and work towards it.

If Birmingham lose to Derby this weekend, the backlash from the fans might force the board to take actions that might have larger consequences so it’s back to the basics. Zola would need to work with the present to get the results while strategically introducing his policies. He has spent so much in the market but the results pale compared to other managers of the club.

Before Christmas the team was not in this bad a shape but things have taken a bad turn that might end in Zola’s dismissal and the gains from the whole process eroded.