Birmingham City missed a huge opportunity to move outside of the relegation zone this afternoon following a disappointing 1-1 draw with Huddersfield Town, leading to frustration from the stands.
The Blues have picked up merely one victory in their previous five league outings which came in a 3-0 win at St. Andrew’s a fortnight ago against Coventry City. An uninspiring goalless draw at Rotherham United followed this result before today’s draw at the John Smith’s Stadium.
Gary Rowett’s side are now firmly staring down the barrel of relegation to League One, capping off what has been a steep decline after the dismissal of John Eustace back in October when the West Midlands club were inside the play-off places.
A disastrous stint by his replacement, Wayne Rooney, began the side’s plummet towards the relegation zone and Birmingham City now sit one point below safety ahead of a tough fixture at home against Norwich City next weekend.
Following the club’s 1-1 draw at Huddersfield earlier today, supporters voiced their frustrations at the final whistle, with chants of “you’re not fit to wear the shirt” being bellowed from the away section.
Speaking after the game, head coach Rowett admitted that he understands their disappointment towards the team, pinning a dreadful record away from home as one of the reasons behind the side’s struggles [quotes via Birmingham Live]:
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“I understand it.
“I see the fans follow us in great numbers, in great voice, for great expense,” Rowett said.
“At this stage of the season, they see other teams winning games of football and there’s an expectation when you’re playing the two teams around us that you go and win one of the games.
“We deserve to be where we are and that’s really simple at this stage of the season. Our away form has been incredibly poor all season. You have to show a much better mentality away from home.”
Writer’s View
Unfortunately, for Birmingham City, safety is now firmly out of their hands. If the Blues don’t manage to pick up all three points next weekend at home to Norwich, relegation will be confirmed, although this still may not be enough as Plymouth Argyle, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn Rovers could all earn victories too.
The likelihood is that the club will drop down to the third tier and the ownership and hierarchy need to take a long, hard look at themselves in the mirror for some disastrous decisions made throughout the campaign which have been the catalyst for the team’s demise.
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