The games continue to come thick and fast for Chris Davies’ Birmingham City in League One, with a home clash against Peterborough United up next for the buoyed-on Blues.
After an underwhelming 1-1 draw kicked off their League One season against Reading, the ambitious West Midlands side have been near faultless since, with five wins managed now on the bounce which included a recent terrific 3-1 takedown of promotion rivals Wrexham at St. Andrew’s.
Winning with swagger last match too away at Rotherham United, it does feel harsh to speculate that Davies could tinker with his lineup for today’s game, but one defender could miss out.
Gardner-Hickman's performance vs Rotherham
That defender could end up being former West Bromwich Albion man Taylor Gardner-Hickman, who joined the ever-growing ranks at the Blues this summer on loan from Bristol City.
The versatile 22-year-old, who can also line up in midfield if required, has made three starts for his employers to date in League One since joining, with his last start seeing him slot into the right-back spot against the Millers.
Although his display was anything but a car crash – with Gardner-Hickman never leaving his side short to the point where the hosts managed to find a way back into the contest – he could be seen as an arguable weak link, having squandered possession 13 times in total at the New York Stadium.
The new Blues recruit did also run his heart out for the cause, but was poor when it came to asserting himself into duels in South Yorkshire all the same, with only two successful duels won from nine attempted in the away match.
There might also be an argument that Davies is currently shoehorning the Bristol City loanee into his starting eleven, with Gardner-Hickman only making four appearances from 40 for the Robins to date in this right-back position, whilst other more naturally suited full-backs sit on the bench.
With Birmingham Live journalist Alex Dicken also stating that the 22-year-old looked ‘leggy’ at full-time, despite gifting him a high 7/10 rating in his post-match thoughts, the time could be right to freshen the lineup against Darren Ferguson’s challengers today, as another new signing strives to start in Gardner-Hickman’s place.
The player who could replace Gardner-Hickman
Alfons Sampsted might well be the lucky defender that starts over Gardner-Hickman as Posh come to town, with the 26-year-old yet to be unleashed from the get-go in any game so far this season.
He has shown in flashes why the Blues decided to pick him up on loan from FC Twente this summer, however, with his brief cameo against Rotherham standing out.
Stat
Sampsted
Minutes played
11
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
17
Accurate passes
7/10 (70%)
Key passes
1
Big chances created
1
Successful dribbles
1/1
Total duels won
2/2
Whilst Gardner-Hickman failed to win a single duel when he was on the pitch versus the Millers, Sampsted would enter the fray for just 11 minutes and successfully win all of his own, whilst also creating a big chance late on to try and make his side’s 2-0 lead in the game even more convincing.
Unfortunately for Sampsted, who would have loved an assist to show for his late efforts, fellow second-half substitute Keshi Anderson would fluff his lines after being found in space by the Iceland international.
Ethan Laird will also be back soon and raring to go in this right-back spot, after finding himself sidelined with an injury of late, as Davies’ options all over the pitch seem to be plentiful.
That was the case last match for sure, as Alfie May was surprisingly demoted to the bench, with Davies perhaps wanting to change things up in defence this time around by boldly omitting Gardner-Hickman.
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