“We want him back” Birmingham let “special” star leave for £0, now he’s outperforming Iwata.
With Chris Davies’ Blues presently occupying the top spot in League One, Birmingham City appears to be coasting to promotion back up to the Championship at the first attempt.
Although supporters of other third-tier teams will undoubtedly be hoping that Birmingham doesn’t dominate the league to add excitement to the division, the statistics indicate that the former Premier League team should easily gain promotion with only one loss from 12 games.
Tomoki Iwata stands out as one player who has continuously performed admirably during the 39-year-old manager’s stay at St. Andrew’s. Davies should be applauded for his ability to get the new-look Blues team going on all cylinders to take the challenging league by storm.
Iwata’s form this season
Apart from the ostentatious acquisition of Jay Stansfield from Fulham, Birmingham approached their summer business gradually rather than splurging for an immediate promotion effort. Iwata’s move from Celtic was much more understated.
It was a brilliant move for Davies to sign the Japanese midfielder, with whom he had a good working relationship while Ange Postecoglou was his assistant manager at Celtic. The 27-year-old is already a huge fan favorite due to his unwavering work ethic in the heart of the pitch.
Iwata has scored four goals in all competitions and provided one assist, including this first-time effort that beat Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper Luke Southwood earlier this month in a resounding 2-0 victory. His dynamic performances have also won over waves of Birmingham fans.
As more and more victories start to be anticipated in the third division, the former Celtic player has been a mainstay in his manager’s starting lineups for his team’s previous eight League One games.
With this former Blues failure rejoining the team and now outperforming Iwata at his present employment, Birmingham might be laughing even harder in the midfield positions.
The ex-Birmingham midfielder now outperforming Iwata
The guy in question is Daniel Crowley, a former Gunners junior player who was once predicted to be a great star in North London. His name may sound familiar to Arsenal supporters as much as it does to those with ties to the League One table toppers.
In addition to boasting six goals from 36 appearances for the U21s, the 5’9″ midfielder would never play for his former employers at the senior level. In 2016, Arsene Wenger praised Crowley as a “special” talent while he was still a member of the Premier League’s top teams.
After being released by Arsenal, he struggled and became something of a vagrant while playing in the Netherlands until Birmingham offered him a chance to return to the English game in 2019.
With just two goals and five assists in 45 games at St. Andrew’s, the attacking midfielder’s time away from the comforts of the Emirates would prove to be another lackluster tenure before he left at the end of his contract in the summer of 2021.
| Crowley’s L2 numbers for Notts County (24/25) vs Iwata’s L1 numbers (24/25) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Stat – per 90 mins* | Crowley | Iwata |
| Games played | 12 | 8 |
| Goals scored | 3 | 3 |
| Assists | 3 | 1 |
| Big chances missed | 3 | 0 |
| Big chances created | 8 | 2 |
| Touches* | 93.3 | 70.6 |
| Accurate passes* | 68.1 (92%) | 52.6 (88%) |
| Stats by Sofascore | ||
However, Crowley has undoubtedly found his rhythm when playing for Notts County right now. The midfielder has surpassed Iwata’s league totals while playing for the Magpies this season, including six goals and six assists, and he averages an incredible 93.3 touches per League Two match.
The former Arsenal player has also added an assist in the EFL Cup, bringing his impressive goal contribution totals to seven from 13 games across all competitions. This matches the amount he managed for Birmingham in 45 largely inconsequential games, and it also surpasses Iwata’s return of five goal involvements in ten Blues games.
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