Football Season Guide

Gary Rowett turned Birmingham into a side upwardly mobile last term after he succeeded Lee Clark as boss at St Andrew's. He ensured Birmingham were far more defensively solid. The summer has been fairly quiet but he has strengthened the midfield with signings of Maikel Kieftenbeld and Jon Toral who offer excitement. The departure of keeper Darren Randolph is a less positive point but Tomasz Kuszczak has arrived so they should not be weakened in that regard. There remains problems behind the scenes in terms of ownership but that situation has improved slightly year on and Birmingham are in a far better place than where they were. They can now think more positively towards a push at the other end of the table after a few years fighting for their Championship lives.