“My hunch is” – A pundit responds to Chris Davies’ massive Alfie May call at Birmingham City.
EFL commentator George Elek feels Chris Davies’ choice to combine Lyndon Dykes and Jay Stansfield at the weekend will be a trend that will continue throughout the season.
Dykes made his Blues debut in a 2-0 win over Rotherham United. He joined the club from Queens Park Rangers during the summer transfer window.
While teammate forward Alfie May was favored in the recent 3-1 success over Wrexham, the former R’s man shown how significant he will be in the next season with his effort against the Millers.
The destructive impact the two had against a team that will have had promotion hopes this season has given Elek cause to believe that it is a tandem that Chris Davies will gravitate towards more often than not.
George Elek supports Lyndon Dykes and Jay Stansfield’s choice.
Dykes’ strong presence up front added another dimension to the City squad over the weekend, as he repeatedly challenged the Millers’ defenders while also providing space for his teammates to exploit.
After making two substitute appearances before the journey to Yorkshire, the Scot’s performance at the New York Stadium proved his value after a reputed £1 million transfer to St Andrew’s last month.
Dykes replaced May, who had scored four goals in his first five league outings before the weekend but only appeared in the last 12 minutes the previous time out.
Elek is sure that the starting striking partnership from the weekend will continue in the coming weeks and months, despite May’s great start to the season. Stansfield, worth £20 million, continues to score.
Elek said on the Not The Top 20 Podcast: “I was impressed by Stansfield throughout the game. It was interesting to note that Chris Davies, despite Alfie May’s good start to the season, switched it up and played Lyndon Dykes up top through the middle, with Stansfield as the ten, and it worked really well.
| Birmingham City striker stats 24/25 (FBRef) | |||||
| Alfie May | Jay Stansfield | Lyndon Dykes | |||
| Appearances | 6 | 2 | 3 | ||
| Starts | 5 | 2 | 1 | ||
| Goals | 4 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Assists | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Goal contribution/90 | 1.11 | 1.81 | 0.00 | ||
“Even more, Iwata’s goal was the result of a pass placed into Stansfield’s foot and a blocked shot.
“My hunch is that this is probably what we are going to see for the most part, it makes more sense for Stansfield to be playing off Dykes rather than try and wedge May and Stansfield in together, but we will see how that develops.”
George Elek supports Alfie May to contribute to Birmingham City’s success.
Stansfield and May play comparable roles in the club, therefore May’s game time may be restricted as Davies prioritizes the player who has already scored three goals in his first two appearances back.
While May has begun the season on fire and won his team plenty of points with his goals, the Blues will face a season-long struggle for minutes at the business end of the field.
That competition will only bring out the best in all of the club’s attackers, and Elek feels we are seeing the best of City as they prepare for the upcoming season.
He went on to say, “It is a fantastic alternative to have, and I am confident that May will play a role this season.
“It was another example of Birmingham…” My critique of them in the first few games of the season was that they didn’t appear to be light years ahead of their opponents.
“They were having to rely on late games in marginal games, but I think when it has mattered against both Wrexham and against Rotherham, in a week they have been well clear.”
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