Birmingham City

Image source, Rex Features

Birmingham City boss Chris Davies said his players "felt they deserved more" in defeat at Leicester, ending their unbeaten start to the Championship season.

An early goal from Abdul Fatawu and a second late on from Ricardo Pereira wrapped up a 2-0 win for the Foxes.

The loss left Blues seventh in the early table before Saturday's fixtures.

"I was really disappointed to lose that match," Davies told BBC Radio WM.

"I think we conceded a poor goal to start the game, which is unlike us, but we recovered really well.

"Obviously, they've gone up the other end in the last moments and got a goal from the very little they had around our box.

"The players are very disappointed because they felt they deserved a lot more than what they got out of that game.

"What we've seen is that we've got the ball into good areas, but we've got to make them defend a little better. More crosses, more box action."

Listen to Davies' post-match interview with BBC Radio WM on BBC Sounds

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Birmingham remain interested in former England international Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after his departure from Besiktas.

The 32-year-old is available on a free transfer after leaving the Black Eagles following two years in Turkey.

Oxlade-Chamberlain is also understood to have Premier League interest while a sentimental return to Southampton - where he started his career - cannot be ruled out but strong interest remains from St Andrew's.

Ambitious Blues, promoted after winning League One with an EFL record of 111 points last season, are determined to challenge for promotion to the Premier League this term and are considering bringing Oxlade-Chamberlain in.

The ex-Arsenal and Liverpool midfielder, who won the Champions League in 2019 and Premier League with the Reds in 2020, is eager to return to England to be with his young family.

Wages are not expected to be an issue with Oxlade-Chamberlain believed to be realistic and aware not to price himself out of any move, while Besiktas said they had agreed to pay him compensation of 1.75m euros (£1.5m) under the terms of his termination.

The midfielder, capped 35 times by England, made 50 appearances for Besiktas after leaving Anfield in 2023, scoring five goals, and won the Turkish Cup in 2024.

He enjoyed a good relationship with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer - who was sacked by the club on Thursday - with the former Manchester United boss previously praising his professionalism and experience.

He made 18 appearances, scoring once, in the second half of last season as Besiktas finished fourth to qualify for the Europa League.

But they were knocked out of the competition by Shakhtar and failed to reach the league stage of the Europa Conference League after losing in the play-offs to Lausanne on Thursday, which cost Solskjaer his job.

The EFL weekend gets under way with a mouthwatering clash between Leicester and Birmingham at the King Power on Friday night (20:00 BST).

The two sides were playing two divisions apart last season but go into this match with the unbeaten Blues two places and one point ahead of the Foxes in the fledgling Championship standings.

• Leicester City have won each of their past four league games against Birmingham City, two via a 2-1 scoreline and the other two via a 3-2 scoreline.

• Birmingham City have won just two of their past 12 away league games against Leicester City (D2 L8), failing to win on any of their last four visits to the King Power Stadium.

• Leicester have won each of their past three home league games and will be looking to win four in succession for the first time since April 2024.

• Through their opening three Championship matches this season, Birmingham have faced just 18 shots in total and four shots on target – no side has faced fewer of either in the 2025-26 competition.

• Amongst the 103 players in the Championship this season to have attempted 100+ passes, no player holds a better pass accuracy rate than Leicester's Harry Winks (96.3%), whilst teammate Boubakary Soumare ranks second (93.4%)

Jane Lewis
BBC Sport Scotland Senior Reporter

Image source, SNS

Scotland and Birmingham City striker Lyndon Dykes is a loan target for Hibernian.

But as yet there's been no further movement on a potential deal for the 29-year-old before Monday's transfer deadline.

Dykes, who has been named in Steve Clarke's Scotland squad for next month's opening World Cup qualifiers, has made just one start in five appearances for English Championship newcomers Birmingham this season.

He joined the Blues from Queens Park Rangers last summer but struggled for regular game-time and scored just three times before missing the final three months of the 2024-25 season through injury.

Australia-born Dykes has nine goals in 42 caps for Scotland.

Birmingham City have added Rennes' 21-year-old Senegalese defender Mikayil Faye to their list of possible transfer targets. (Give Me Sport), external

Blues are also believed to want Celtic's South Korean winger Yang Hyun-Jun, 23. (Football League World), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Thursday's gossip column here.

Birmingham City head coach Chris Davies admits his side looked "disjointed" as they were knocked out of the EFL Cup following a 1-0 loss to Port Vale.

Davies made 10 changes to the starting XI that beat Oxford United 1-0 on Saturday. However, Vale took advantage of their rotated rivals through a single headed goal from Jaheim Headley just before half-time.

The loss marked Blues' first competitive defeat since the EFL Trophy Final against Peterborough in April.

"There's disappointment there, that was well below our normal level," Davies told BBC Radio WM.

"I made 10 changes to the team, a lot of new faces, a few debuts so there was a lot going on. We looked quite disjointed, we weren't quite as fluid as we normally are."

Despite Birmingham having 69.9% possession and the most touches inside the opposition's box at 20 compared to Vale's 14 - the League One champions weren't able to produce a shot on target.

"We know we can play better than that and they can play better than that." Davies added.

"Although there was a lot of change. Some of them haven't played a lot and we're trying to bring it all together with three games in a week to make sure we have enough energy for all three.

"We couldn't quite find that rhythm that we normally have and that continued into the second half despite a few substitutions. We couldn't find that normal presence around their box and threat on their goal."

Listen to the full interview with Chris Davies on BBC Sounds

Samantha Fletcher
Final Score reporter at St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park

Image source, Rex Features

Birmingham City fans are very much used to watching their team win at St Andrew's - they're on a run of 27 home league games without defeat.

That last home loss was when visiting Oxford United boss Gary Rowett was interim manager at Blues in April 2024.

The up front offerings in Jay Stansfield and Kyogo Furuahashi are impressive but o Saturday I thought Tomoki Iwata and Paik Seung-ho stood out as a perfect pairing in the midfield.

They controlled the game and intelligently delivered plenty of great balls into Oxford's half.

Watching these two, you feel confident that not only will chances be created but counter attacks will be stopped in their tracks.

It's a pleasure to watch them work together in perfect harmony.

Image source, Rex Features

Birmingham City's 1-0 win over Oxford United went exactly how Chris Davies "anticipated", according to the Blues head coach.

Paik Seung-ho's low first-half finish was enough for Birmingham to record their second win of the season on their return to the Championship following promotion.

"It was exactly as I anticipated," Davies told BBC Radio WM. "I think we had to really focus on the process rather than the outcome.

"You're at home and people say we should beat Oxford, but I watch all these teams and I know how hard it is to beat them, how strong and disciplined they are, so for us it was just trying to focus on our process and try to be relentless with that.

"I was confident we'd have more territory but it was a case of were we going to better create the chances and put the pressure on them. We managed to do it."

Listen to the full interview on BBC Sounds

Birmingham City aim to keep their unbeaten run going when they host Oxford United on Saturday (15:00 BST), as striker Jay Stansfield looks to score for the third consecutive game.

The U's are chasing their first win of the season having been narrowly beaten 1-0 by Portsmouth and 3-2 by Hull City in their opening Championship fixtures.

• This will be the first time that Birmingham City and Oxford United have met in the league since December 1998, which was a 7-1 victory for the Blues.

• Oxford United won their last away league game against Birmingham City 1-0 in November 1998, a result which ended a prior 10-match winless streak at St Andrew's between September 1970 and October 1997 (D6 L4).

• Birmingham are unbeaten across their last 26 home league games since a 1-0 defeat to Cardiff City in April 2024 (W21 D5), scoring 52 goals in that time and conceding only 12.

• Oxford United could lose their opening three matches of a league season for the first time since 2018-19.

• Oxford United have failed to win any of their last seven league games against newly promoted opposition (D5 L2), since a 3-1 away victory over Carlisle United in League One in January 2024.

Image source, Rex Features

Birmingham City boss Chris Davies has again underlined the value to the side of "catalyst" forward Jay Stansfield.

Blues' star striker was instrumental in their dramatic 2-1 comeback win over Blackburn Rovers, sealing victory with an injury-time penalty - the visitors' second goal in a remarkable turnaround in added time.

"Jay does play with emotion and doesn't like to lose. He likes to make an impact in the game," Davies told BBC Radio WM.

"It's all very well not wanting to lose, and being emotional, but it's case of 'what are you doing with the ball?'

"The way he took his penalty was exquisite. The keeper went the right way with a good dive but he put it right in the side netting.

"Jay was a real catalyst with his intensity and energy to get us going."

Stansfield's successful spot-kick maintained his record of scoring in all of Birmingham's games so far - in both Championship matches and their Carabao Cup tie.

The former Fulham forward has now notched 26 goals in 47 games since making his loan move from the Cottagers permanent ahead of last season.

In the 2024-25 season he scored 23 times, with 19 goals in League One, in Blues' record-breaking title win.

Nine of those league goals were penalties, leading to some away fans dubbing the 22-year-old 'Pensfield'.

"He is an exceptional penalty taker, no doubt about that," Davies said.

"I've seen a lot of them, and the one last week [against Blackburn] with the context, the time he had to wait, with the speed he put on it and where he put it, I thought it was one of the best I've seen - whipping it in that corner.

"Long may it continue."

Davies also gave a small update on injury news concerning full-back Alex Cochrane ahead of Saturday's visit of Oxford United.

Left-back Cochrane came off at half-time against Blackburn with what looked like a groin problem, but Davies said it was "nothing major" and the 25-year-old was "not far away" from being in the frame for the weekend.

Sheffield Wednesday are close to signing former Norwich winger Onel Hernandez, with Birmingham and Wrexham having also shown interest in the 32-year-old Cuba international after his release by the Canaries. (SportsBoom, external)

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Wednesday's gossip column here.

Boston United have signed Birmingham City centre-back Tommy Fogarty on loan until January.

The 21-year-old has previously been on loan at Ebbsfleet United and Scottish Championship side Dunfermline Athletic.

Birmingham City are not pursuing a move for Al-Hilal striker Alexander Mitrovic despite being linked with the former Fulham forward. (Birmingham Live), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Monday's gossip column here.

Birmingham City striker Jay Stansfield believes their dramatic late win at Blackburn Rovers underlines the strength in depth in their squad.

Ethan Laird came off the bench to win the 90th-minute penalty, which Stansfield converted, and it was another substitute, Lyondon Dykes, who added the stoppage-time winner.

"Unbelievable players are sitting on the bench and that just shows the strength of this team and what we can deliver," Stansfield told BBC Radio WM.

"I thought the game was over (after the penalty), I didn't realise there was 11 minutes added on and as soon as we saw the board we knew momentum was with us.

"Our fitness, our energy our togetherness, the gaffer says we're the big blue machine and we saw that in the last few minutes of the game."

He added: "When we're chasing the game that's when big players need to step up and that's what I enjoy doing, it's what I thrive off.

"My heart was racing when I put the ball down on the penalty spot and you look up and see all these people that have travelled and think I don't want to let them down. I know what I'm good at and penalties is one of those things."

Having taken four points from their opening two games, Birmingham will be at home to Oxford United on Saturday.

Image source, Getty Images

Birmingham boss Chris Davies was delighted to see his side recover from a goal down to beat Blackburn at Ewood Park, the Blues' first win since returning to the second tier.

"It is a massive three points," Davies told BBC Radio West Midlands.

"I thought we were the better team throughout the game, we were looking solid and didn't give much away.

"I thought the game would open up in the second half, but to come from a goal down with five minutes to go away from home and win it is something pretty special.

"We are not conceding a lot of territory and chances, we are looking really strong in these games.

"I nearly made the changes earlier, but I thought we had creativity on the pitch, so I let the boys grow back into the game, and I was pleased with how we played the game and the contribution of the guys who came on.

"The desire of our team in the final few minutes was what I loved. We were bursting forward and when the game opened up we ran and ran."