A draw at St. Andrews on Saturday
saw Birmingham move four points away from the relegation places, while
Blackpool remained fourth in the table. The young and spritely Jesse Lingard
opened the scoring for Birmingham in the first half, before the more
experienced Ricardo Fuller levelled for Blackpool ten minutes later. In a
relatively high-tempo and game, a draw was the fair result.
Birmingham started the match on
the front foot, pressing high up the pitch and looking to get the ball forward
quickly. Zigic was the only recognized striker, but playing behind him was an
attack-minded trio of Burke, Novak and Lingard, who often looked to break
forward. With Blackpool playing a five in midfield, our central duo of Reilly
and Adeyami were forced into a more direct passing style, because if they tried
to pass the ball short and patiently, they would have been outnumbered in the
centre. My criticism of the trio who played behind Zigic, therefore, would be
that they didn’t quite track back enough and offer the easy option for
teammates. Over the course of the match, this led to a few misplaced passes
from Callum Reilly and Tom Adeyami, who are hardworking players yet they cannot
be relied upon for creativity in midfield.
In the first 20 minutes,
Blackpool did not threaten at all. They seemed to play very deep, almost
negatively, and it left many wondering why they were so high up in the table.
At times Ricardo Fuller looked isolated on his own up front, and at 34, it was
unclear whether he would have the legs to play as a lone striker.
On 27 minutes, the first goal
came through Jesse Lingard. Capitalizing on a very poor backpass from Kirk
Broadfoot, he tucked the ball in with a crisp finish to mark his sixth goal for
the club since joining on loan from Manchester United. A goal fully deserved, because
Birmingham had had the majority of the play at that point.
We then saw the best and worst
parts of having a young, academy graduate in your side. Birmingham’s left-back
Mitch Hancox had been having an excellent game so far. He had kept one of the
best young English wingers in Tom Ince quiet, was strong in the challenge,
which often earned him a roar of support from Blues fans, and he showed some
decent skill on the ball as well. His passion for the club shone through.
However, 10 minutes after our goal, he was caught out of position on the left
and the talented Ince ran past him, and drilled a low cross for Ricardo Fuller,
who placed the ball home with an assured finish. Hancox’s commitment to the
cause has never been in doubt, yet his young age makes him liable to making
costly errors in terms of defensive positioning.
After the goal, Blackpool found
some momentum, and began to look very strong on the counter attack. Ince, who
had failed to impress for most of the first half, suddenly looked his menacing
self, as a man who had once attracted the eye of Sir Alex Ferguson, amongst
other elite managers. He seemed to have rediscovered his confidence and ability
to beat a man with raw pace and strength, yet also showing great intelligence
on Blackpool’s breakaways, which he was often at the centre of. He cut inside
from the left with just one Blues defender back, and picked out Fuller for a
second time, whose fierce shot into the near corner drew a reaction save from
Darren Randolph.
The half-time whistle sounded
with the score at 1-1. Though that did not reflect our slight superiority in
the time leading up to their equalizer, Blackpool looked extremely dangerous in
the last 10 minutes of the half, leaving some Blues fans pondering whether they
would take a point.
Shortly after half-time, Lee
Clark brought Callum Reilly off for Dariusz Dudka to make his debut. The
ex-Poland international had signed for Birmingham City on a two month contract
a few weeks ago, although Clark had been keen to wait for him to regain match
fitness before fielding him. Dudka’s performance gleaned mixed reviews from
Blues fans. To some he looked slow, and a little bit of a lightweight in the
centre, although his technical talent came to light, hitting a sweet volley
from outside the box minutes after coming on, which flew just over the bar.
Both sides had their chances in
the second half. It took a heroic clearance off the line from Dan Burn to deny
Ricardo Fuller, whose shot looked to be trickling into the net. A Blackpool
pass across the edge of the box looked to create a big opportunity, though it
was Neal Bishop who had the task of scoring. He couldn’t do better than hit it
straight at the keeper, as a less attack-minded player.
There was a scrappy phase in play
until the last ten minutes, when Birmingham battled to try and capture a win.
There were brief moments when Blackpool’s penalty area became a game of
ping-pong, Novak threatened to score with a left-footed effort, while late
substitute Demarai Gray hit his shot straight at Matt Gilks with a half-chance
before the end.
All in all, the draw was a very
reasonable reflection on the balance of play. In a game of plenty of chances, particularly
in the second half, either side could have nicked a win. A point apiece does
not do much to change either side’s respective causes. Birmingham keep some
distance between themselves and the relegation zone, although they havea
potentially important match at Barnsley next week. For Blackpool’s play-off
ambitions it is a decent point too. None of the three teams who were below them
prior to kick-off won, and the Tangerines next face two of the current bottom
three sides in Sheffield Wednesday and Yeovil. A draw was a respectable result
for both clubs, and it was a fair one.
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