Birmingham City’s problem position might be solved as Alfie May takes centre stage
talking points and highlights after Birmingham City defeated Lincoln City 3-1 in League One.
Birmingham City easily returned to winning ways in League One on Saturday, defeating Lincoln City 3-1.
The Blues trailed 34 seconds into their game at Sincil Bank, but they came back to win again. Keshi Anderson (2) and Willum Willumsson cancelled out Bailey Cadamarteri’s first goal. Prior to Anderson’s third goal, which sealed the victory for the Blues, goalie Ryan Allsop made an incredible penalty save.
This season, Chris Davies’ Blues have gained 13 points from losing situations, which is more than half of their total points in League One. The Blues are presently five points clear of third place.Here are our talking points following the win at Lincoln…
Allsop takes the acclaim
Goalkeeper has been a problem position for Blues this season despite the strength of the department. Allsop and Bailey Peacock-Farrell have Championship pedigree and are in their peak years.
Allsop’s performances since dislodging Peacock-Farrell have been calming. He is exceptional with the ball at his feet and always available to take the pressure off his defenders but, most importantly, his hands have been quite safe too.
The timing of Allsop’s penalty save was crucial. Lincoln lacked quality but you wouldn’t have bet against them shutting up shop for a draw had they equalised. Allsop made sure Blues got three precious points.
This could be Alfie May’s chance
Who believes a new deal ruins a player? Anderson gave the Blues his best game of the season one week after signing a new deal. In addition to defeating Davies, Anderson also triumphed over the visiting supporters. When a young Bluenose read out the team before the game started, including Anderson’s name, it generated one of the loudest cheers. It’s obvious that the Blues management, or at least the ones he’s worked under, value the player today who hasn’t always been valued.
Stansfield has admitted in the past that he is more than happy to operate deeper, which would solve the issue, but Davies likes the idea of Blues’ record signing playing on the shoulder of the last defender. If May continues to thrive in Stansfield’s absence, as he did at Lincoln, then Davies might reconsider how he uses them together.
Anderson has taken his
Who says a new contract spoils a player? Anderson made his most productive performance yet for Blues a week after signing a new deal. Anderson has won over not only Davies but also the travelling supporters. Before the match started a young Bluenose read out the team and Anderson’s name prompted one of the loudest cheers. A player who hasn’t always been appreciated at Blues, certainly by the managers he’s worked under, most definitely is now.
Anderson desires to follow the Blues as they go up the ranks. His most recent performance has earned him some credibility and may even vault him back to the top of the Blues wide men hierarchy.
“I saw Keshi Anderson play when it mattered at the end of last season very early on, in the first week of preseason,” Davies remarked. “He’s a quality player who works hard for the team and is a dependable player.”
Slow starts and set piece goals
The Blues’ set piece problems from the previous season haven’t completely disappeared even with the addition of new players. For the second straight league game, the Blues lost a throw-in when Christoph Klarer was unable to make a clean contact.
The previous five goals the Blues have given up have come from set pieces four times. Unprompted, Davies talked about it in his post-match interview.
“This season, we’ve done a great job defending set pieces, but there have been a few slip-ups and instances where we haven’t been fully ourselves, so it’s something we need to look at,” he said.
This team is extremely difficult to beat when it gets off to a fast start and regains concentration during set pieces.
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