Birmingham City will NOT be relegated this season after appointing Gary Rowett as manager until the end of the season. That is my confident prediction.
Blue Noses hardly need reminding that they play at fellow strugglers Queens Park Rangers this coming Good Friday, who are one point ahead of the Blues with a better goal difference of three.
The Blues are one point outside the drop zone, with a better goal difference than the three teams currently in it.
They are lucky that Rowett is available. The previous Birmingham regime sacked the Bromsgrove-born 50-year-old in December 2016 with the team in seventh position in the Championship table.
When he joined Birmingham in October 2014, they were one from bottom and he guided them to tenth position. He was sacked after being linked with another club.
It was a stupid decision because many good people in different walks of life are regularly approached by other organisations.
The bad decision by the club was compounded by the appointment of a glamour name – Gianfranco Zola, who went after just two wins in 24 games and with the club in a relegation battle!
We have been there before as recently as this season – Wayne Rooney for John Eustace, with the club in sixth position and now in a relegation battle which Rowett will win in the absence of Tony Mowbray.
Gary joins Birmingham after leaving Millwall last October. He will tighten the defence and make sure the midfield is more secure and productive.
Blues will have to start taking more of the chances they squander.
His track record as a manager is very decent managing Burton, Blues, Derby, Stoke and Millwall.
His playing career as a defender included Derby, Birmingham and Leicester.
He has become the fourth manager at St Andrew’s this season after the Blues had lost five of the six games since Mowbray had to leave probably for the rest of this season to recover from a serious medical condition.
Football teams turn over players quickly and only the injured Lukas Jutkiewicz remains from Rowett’s first managerial spell at St Andrew’s.
On Monday, Birmingham are at home to Preston North End who are ninth and just five points outside the play-offs.
Then on Saturday week, the Blues go to Leicester City, who are also desperate for points after losing their position as leaders (albeit on goal difference) to Leeds but with a game in hand.
One thing in the Blues’ favour is that the Championship is very unpredictable!
Meanwhile, normally I dislike watching friendlies in sport which is meant to be competitive.
However, the physicality of England’s friendly with Brazil at Wembley on Saturday, together with some over-lenient refereeing, made for interesting viewing.
The media always, and usually wrongly, take a form guide from friendlies, which club and national teams often lose before going on to win their competitions!
England had several players missing, including the captain Harry Kane, midfielder Jordan Henderson, Bukayo Saka, Luke Shaw and Reece James.
Jude Bellingham continued to be the star player, despite no protection from the referee.
Brazil’s Lucas Paqueta was the best player overall but, having been cautioned, should have been sent off for a second yellow card.
The greatest of them all, Pele, was only 17 and the youngest-ever to win a World Cup when Brazil beat Sweden 5-2 in the 1958 final. Pele scored twice.
On Saturday, the only goal was scored by Brazil’s substitute Endrick, who at 17 became the youngest international scorer at Wembley.
When he was 16, he was playing in a Brazilian under-20s tournament before being named player of the tournament a year later when his national team won an under-17s tournament in France.
Real Madrid have an agreement to sign him in July when he turns 18. Remember the name – Endrick, who is full of football tricks.
Chelsea were trying to sign him but delaying over the fee gave the Spanish giants the chance to nip in!
England, too, have a brilliant new 18-year-old midfielder you will be hearing a lot of too in the future – Manchester United’s Kobbie Mainoo.
The top club academies have been developing young players and Southgate has been following them through the nation’s younger levels. The future looks very bright and, at full strength, England will be favourites to win Euro 2024.
Shocking – Nike’s kit changing the design of the national flag! Shocking – the price of the shirts for kids... £119.99 and for adults £124.99...
And what a game at Villa Park on Saturday (5.30pm on Sky) when Wolves visit Aston Villa. Wolves hit with injuries up front; Villa gamely holding on to fourth spot and a Champions League spot .
West Bromwich Albion go to Millwall on Friday before Watford at home on Monday.
Coventry City are at Huddersfield on Friday, have Cardiff at home on Monday before entertaining Leeds at the Coventry Building Society Arena on Saturday week.
What a run-in for all our West Midlands teams.
