Here’s the match report.
Chris Davies, not Martin, Birmingham manager, spoke to Sky: “We’re disappointed to lose the game - I thought we had the lion’s share of the game, were strong and dominant throughout. I thought we disrupted Leicester and played well with the ball until the final bit where we couldn’t create clear chances.
“A lot of it was good but it was a poor opening goal to concede although we recovered well from that but then a poor second goal to concede and it’s difficult to take.”
Abdul Fatawu, the first goalscorer, spoke to Sky: “I’m just going to say that thank you to the medical team, and all the team and the support from team teammates, and yeah, it’s just a blessing to be back like this again and running again. I’m I just say it’s a good feeling and thank God.
Ricardo, fellow scorer: “He’s doing well. I know now you will enjoy even more after the time he was out. So he enjoy every day and I’m happy for him, for sure. Two years ago, it wasn’t easy, but now we have to go and try it today and try to win, and now we have some break to get better, to keep training and to improve our performance.”
Where does that leave these two in the table before the international break?
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Middlesbrough | 3 | 5 | 9 |
| 3 | Leicester | 4 | 3 | 9 |
| 4 | Coventry | 3 | 8 | 7 |
| 6 | Preston North End | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 7 | Birmingham | 4 | 0 | 7 |
| 8 | Millwall | 3 | -1 | 6 |
Full-time: Leicester 2-0 Birmingham
An object lesson for Birmingham in their attempt to get to the promised land. Leicester are desiccated, reduced from a team that got gubbed each week in the Premier League but they have quality in attack and defence. And in young Jeremy Monga, a potential star of the future.
90+6 min: Demarai Gray has been getting pelters. Why? Not sure, he was a good Leicester player. There are jeers when he loses the ball by the touchline.
90+5 min: Doyle, who’s a fine passer, sets up a Birmingham move but there are cheers when Daka wallops the ball clear.
90+4 min: Leicester’s attackers full of freedom now. Laird has to stop Ayew. Monga was looming.
90+2 min: Peter Oh is back: “I wonder who’s more likely to score for Birmingham, the German Ducksch or the Scotsman Dykesch?’
Ducksch missches. Worth saying Ricardo, the scorer, should not have been on the pitch after his tackle on Kyogo. It was nasty.
90 min: Birmingham look beaten. They have struggled tonight with the lift in standards and a lack of fluency. Monga meanwhile is running them ragged. Still, there’s nine (9!) added minutes.
Goal! Leicester 2-0 Birmingham (Ricardo, 88)
Leicester get the chance on the attack, at last. Birmingham try to clear their lines. Monga shows his skills down the line, and his cross finds Ricardo, his fellow sub, to finish beautifully. Nice finish, even better creation from the sweet sixteen kid.
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86 min: Dykes is the target for a launched ball. On comes Wout Faes, to boos. From who? The home fans, it seems.
85 min: Lynden Dykes is on, to face his former QPR manager, Marti Cifuentes. Fatawu leaves the field, and yes, it’s cramp. Worse than a broken leg as Kevin Keegan once said.
83 min: Fatawu, the scorer, is down. It looks like cramp; he has only just come back from a serious knock.
81 min: Brum pushing and pushing but Leicester keep clearing their lines. Paik slips on the touchline to much amusement from home fans but their team is under serious pressure as they can’t keep the ball.
79 min: Stephen McCrossan gets in touch: “Right, that’s it, I’m getting the next train down from Glasgow….Honestly, I’m getting a bit annoyed now.”
It could be worse, it could be Russell Martin’s Rangers, who with no skin in the game, I have enjoyed hugely this season.
Niall Mullen is also in: “Given Tom Brady’s involvement with Birmingham I wonder in what situation would it be advantageous to have the ball slightly deflated. Maybe against Arsenal’s set pieces? Or if you have a keeper with Onana-wrists?”
77 min: Free-kick with Monga as draught-excluder in the Leicester wall. Gray takes it, into the wall, Anderson shoots and then Laird, great save from the keeper. Klarer heads over, Doyle had fouled Stolarczyk; Leicester didn’t have their Ducksch in a row. Stolarczyk is down hurt.
76 min: Ricardo takes down Kyogo. That’s a terrible challenge. He gets yellow. It might be red. That’s the end of Kyogo and Koumas. Tommy Doyle, a good passer, as is Ducksch.
75 min: Ricardo breaks up a Brum attack, taking down Koumas. Leicester look to be replenishing their confidence and Chris Davies is to make some changes.
73 min: There’s an awful lot of 16-year-olds in the game right now. Monga made his debut when still 15. That used to be unheard of.
71 min: Multiple Leicester changes. Choudhury and Mavididi off, on comes Monga and Ricardo – teenager and veteran. The latter puts on the captain’s armband.
69 min: Oof, Anderson and Choudhury clash, and that’s painful for the Leicester player.
67 min: Stolarczyk hurried into another kick that spins out of play. This seems Birmingham’s best chance of finding a goal, to be honest.
65 min: Klaren is booked for an off-the ball lunge. He then heads away a Thomas free-kick. Daka shoots – the first shot since the Fatawu goal. It’s been that type of performance.
63 min: Comedy of errors as Stolarczyk, the Leicester keeper, smashes the ball out under pressure and Gray trips over it. Liquid football.
62 min: How can Birmingham tempt out Leicester? It’s proving tough. Chris Davies looks tense and nervous. His team have been punchless. Kyogo clatters Okoli and that’s a booking for the former wantaway Celtic striker.
60 min: Big cheers from the home fans as Allsop is pressed as he tries to play the ball as a rush goalie. High praise for the high press.
58 min: Fatawu is booked as his continuing battle with Laird ends in him pulling back the full-back. More Birmingham pressure, relieved by an offside trap well set.
56 min: The ball spins out after a clearance and Kyogo swings his shot just over, it spinning like a top. Young Louis Page goes off, and on comes Patson Daka for Leicester.
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55 min: Ayew does his job at the near post in heading away the corner. But the Leicester defence will have to face more of this.
54 min: Birmingham making lots of noise. Their team is still far too deliberate. But they do manage to press out a corner.
52 minutes: Some chunky challenges being thrown in. The expected goals is 0-1 v 0.39. Good luck to whoever’s winning there…
51 min: Stephen McCrossan is raging: “Speaking as an admittedly grumpy Celtic fan after our midweek shambles, I thought your comment on Kyogo being glad to be free of Celtic was a bit harsh given that he’s been at Rennes for the last six months. He was a great wee player for us for a couple of seasons and then decided he wanted to go. Fair enough. So take it back or I’ll come down there and give you a right good talking to.”
I’d still say he’s glad not to be at Celtic. Now he gets to hang with Tom Brady. And Jeff Lynne. Probably.
50 min: Demarai Gray, still soldiering on, escapes and whips the ball to the back post. Samuel the overlapping full-back heads over. Better from Blues.
48 min: Leicester begin the game with possession, which became a rarity in that first half. Allsop almost gets into trouble when Klarer does a no-look pass and Jordan Ayew – absent in the first half – almost steals in. Allsop comes to the rescue of his captain.
We are back
46 min: So, what can Chris Davies’ team do to get through this Leicester wall?
And looking ahead to the weekend’s big one with Barney Ronay:
Transfer news: Let’s see about this one.
Mary Waltz: “If Leicester think they can just sit back and keep this one-goal lead I think they are fooling themselves.”
That appears the plan. Let’s see if it works.
Half-time: Leicester 1-0 Birmingham
The game has reflected the stakes. Letting Abdul Fatawu go was the one mistake made and Birmingham paid for it. Marti Cifuentes’ plan is working, Chris Davies’s is struggling to create enough chances.
45+5 min: Mavididi crashes the ball behind for a corner, taken deep. Gray gets a chance to take another but it’s cleared. The half closes with a scramble and applause from home fans.
45+2 min: Leicester forwards starved of the ball, Brum’s forwards starved of chances. It’s made for an intriguing tactical battle only lifted by that Fatawu finish.
45 min: Choudhury is silly in smashing into Ethan Laird. He’s booked, too. Five minutes added on.
44 min: The same happens again, Choudhury smashing long, the ball back with Birmingham, and Leicester defending well.
42 min: Choudhury smashes in Koumas to make a vital tackle but Fatawu is ploughing a lone furrow. Leicester keep giving the ball to Leicester.
40 min: Birmingham knocking on the door but seem to lack the incision and creativity. Luke Thomas comes across to smash away. Leicester’s defending has been a trifle agricultural. But effective nonetheless.
38 min: Gray’s pass fizzes across the box but no takers. Chris Davies wants much more from his team.
37 min: Birmingham not getting many numbers forward. They are taking their time when attacking. Mind, Fatawu is isolated by his teammates dropping back.
35 min: Young Koumas has left something on Leicester’s Okoli, who goes down injured while making a clearance. Foul given, no booking. The exuberance of youth.
34 min: For a club of such uncertainty, yo-yoing, the Leicester fans are behind their team.
33 min: Skipp has to do some sweeping up in midfield, where Birmingham have been in control.
31 min: Gray is being double, nay, treble marked by a mindful Leicester. Birmingham in the ascendancy and looking for a way through. The wall of blue shirts from Leicester making it tough for them. Iwata tries to shoot but lobs wide.
29 min: Blues – in white – are pushing on. Gray is still at the fulcrum despite being in obvious pain. Vestergaard makes a fine tackle as Kyogo attempts to beat him for skill.
27 min: Allsop, the Blues keeper, clashes with Page, who trod on his foot by accident. Allsop is not amused and waves away the apology.
25 min: Gray will have to come off soon but he’s full of skill, even with one arm hanging limply. Koumas and Kyogo still yet to see much of the ball. Leicester have looked solid. Wout Faes is on his way out. Is that coincidence?
23 min: Fatawu attempts to send Mavididi away but he slips on a greasy old surface. Gray’s day looks done, and he goes off to come back on again. Chris Davies is not impressed. Not with Gray but his whole team who have been … sloppy.
21 min: Kyogo, possibly glad to be free of Celtic, is struggling to get on the wavelength of his colleagues. Stansfield’s direct running is rather missed by Blues.
19 min: Demarai Gray is still carrying that injury but as we saw with the aforementioned Odegaard and Tonali, they are not easy to just run off.
18 min: Louis Page is galloping through but the ball comes off his heel, just as the Leicester teen looked likely to score. Some gaps in that Blues defence.
17 min: Seen in the stand, El Khannouss, who was a rare ray of light in Leicester’s dreadful last season. Palace bound? It seems so.
16 min: Gray is back and running, and Gray still in some pain forces a corner he will take. Leicester get it clear at the back post.
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14 min: Birmingham at last doing some attacking. Leicester clear as Koumas tries to get involved.
12 min: Gray is sat up but is holding his shoulder. That seems a common injury this season – Odegaard and Tonali this week, for example. But Gray is back on, in some pain.
11 min: First run for Demarai Gray, and he’s brought down. That looked nasty in the way he fell. Chris Davies is furious. It looks nasty. The TV pictures aren’t showing it. Birmingham have time to regroup but it looks likely to be without Gray.
9 min: As good a goal as that was from Abdul Fatawu, Birmingham’s defending was so so lax.
Goal! Leicester 1-0 Birmingham (Fatawu, 8)
What a goal from a player too good for this level, and denied a chance in the big league by the Premier League. Fatawu cut in, Laird left standing and wallop. What a finish.
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7 min: Argy-bargy delays the kick. Luke Thomas’ kick forces a hurried clearance but a Brum attack, too. The danger is snuffed out, quickly.
6 min: Marti Cifuentes did a fine job at QPR, on a shoestring. He looks tense. Fatawu, scorer at The Valley, is fouled and a free-kick chance is readied.
5 min: It’s loud in the stands as fans enjoy the last vestiges of a long, hot summer. Leicester are seeing much of the ball. Birmingham seem happy to let them have it.
3 min: A set piece, a throw, is launched by Hamza, at right-back. Birmingham are back and in good shape. Chris Davies has a reputation for organisation.
2 min: Peter Oh is straight in. “Speaking of Chris Martin, can you report on whether or not there’s a Coldplay-style Kiss Cam at the King Power today?” Watch out, you CEOs and heads of HR. The football? Bitty so far, very bitty.
We are go at the King Power
1 min: Off we go. Some empty seats? And a stray cone left on the field delayed the kick-off. A guilty coach had to run on and remove it. It’s high press and high energy already.
Some loud Kasbabian – thankfully not their awful Sky Premier League anthem – is ringing out. Here we go in the greatest league in the whole bloody world. The teams come out to applause for the last game of August.
Apologies for the Chris Davies/Martin mix-up. Guess I’m just too much of a Coldplay fan. And lover of the current Bristol Rovers striker. Sad thing is, I have actually spoken to Chris Davies. Nurse…
Demarai Gray, who began his career at Birmingham, before joining Leicester in the glory season of 2015-16, is back at Blues, and has experience and talent to add to his boyhood club.
Will Birmingham miss Jay Stansfield, who is missing through injury? He got a foot injury at Port Vale in the EFL. He’ll be out for “weeks”, according to Chris Martin Davies.
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Our resident Grimsby chair – whatever happened to the Mariners this week, anyone know? – Jason Stockwood wrote up these recent thoughts on the Birmingham City ownership.
Good win for Leicester last week at Charlton.
For Birmingham, Lewis Koumas, son of Jason, on loan from Liverpool, an EFL Cup winner in 2024, makes a debut. No Bilal El Khannouss for Leicester again amid transfer talk despite being declared “available”. Jeremy Monga, 16, drops to the bench for Stephy Mavidi but Louis Page, 17, make his first home start.
Plenty of blooming youth around at the club of Jimmy Bloomfield, their legendary manager of the 1970s.
The teams
Leicester: Stolarczyk, Choudhury, Okoli, Vestergaard, Luke Thomas, Soumare, Skipp, Fatawu, Page, Mavididi, Ayew. Subs: Begovic, Faes, Nelson, Winks, Ricardo Pereira, Silko Thomas, Aluko, Monga, Daka.
Birmingham: Allsop, Samuel, Neumann, Klarer, Laird, Willumsson, Paik, Iwata, Gray, Koumas, Furuhashi. Subs: Beadle, Gardner-Hickman, Cashin, Cochrane, Leonard, Doyle, Anderson, Ducksch, Dykes.
Referee: Josh Smith (Lincolnshire)
Preamble
A midlands derby, east v west, and with there being no time like the present, and Stoke (!) running away with the Championship, this is a battle for the playoff. OK, it’s after four games but both teams are in a hurry to the Premier League. Leicester, well, finances dictate they need to get back up. Birmingham, well, with Toms Wagner and Brady involved, are shooting for the moon, and rebuilding the Second City with it. Or something. There’s high stakes at play here, with Chris Martin Davies back at Leicester where he once worked under Brendan Rodgers. Martí Cifuentes is the latest manager asked to turn the Leicester ship around. Signs so far for both clubs have been promising.
Kickoff at 8pm. Join me.
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