There has been a lot of speculation in recent days that the Birmingham City manager Lee Clark will leave the club the next few days. However, the manager has dismissed such speculation by saying that he does not know the reason for this speculation.

Clark has been linked with the vacant managerial job at Blackpool. Even though there has been no approach made by Blackpool for Lee Clark, the bookmakers have made him as the favourite to take over. The first contact from Blackpool was a general enquiry more than three weeks ago. It is understood that they have made no serious offer for the manager in the last few days despite the speculation.

Blackpool are looking to replace Michael Appleton, who decided to take over at Blackburn a few weeks ago. Clark is on a rolling contract at St Andrews after taking over from Chris Hughton in the summer. He has managed to get the club to relative safety despite the ongoing financial troubles at the club. Birmingham are currently 17th in the Championship table with 34 points on the board. They have managed to win just one match in the last five, which has been the reason for their low league position. Clark has said that he is concentrating only on Birmingham at the moment.

“I got lots of texts about it, a lot of money has been put on me, hasn’t there? As I said when I got asked a couple of weeks ago about their approach, I hadn’t been told about it by anybody. But since, when I had a conversation about it with the club, they said there was no [formal] approach made, they turned it down. That’s been it really. I’ve never heard anything else,” said Clark ahead of the match with Nottingham Forest during the weekend.

The former West Ham and American International defender Jonathan Spector has said that he is extremely impressed by the quality shown by the youngsters at Birmingham City.

The injury crisis currently faced by the club has led to the arrival of several youngsters onto the scene in order to cope up with the injury problems for the manager. In the recent match against Cardiff City, Birmingham had as many as 11 players unavailable for the match. As a result, the manager Lee Clark had no other option but to utilise as many as 7 youngsters against Cardiff.

Even the Birmingham lost the match 1-0, the defender Jonathan Spector, who is one of the experienced members of the squad, said that he is extremely impressed with the attitude and the quality shown by the youngsters against Cardiff. This match was always going to be tough for Birmingham because Cardiff are flying high in the Championship table.

Birmingham are just four points above the relegation zone. The financial difficulties faced by the club means that they are unlikely to strengthen in terms of new players during January. Hence, they are unlikely to depend on the same group of youngsters that played a vital role in the match against Cardiff City during the weekend.

“To be fair to the younger players, they’ve done brilliantly and haven’t needed much help. They’ve got a lot of enthusiasm and character – players like Mitch Hancox who has been at the club for years and loves the club. I think that’s football – there’s always uncertainty at every club [in January] no matter where you are. For us players, it’s up to us to concern ourselves to what happens on the pitch,” said the defender after Cardiff match, which left the team in the 20th position.

The Birmingham City manager Lee Clark has said that he is extremely happy with the performance of the team in the recent 1-1 draw with Blackpool.

However, he has said that the state of the pitch meant that his side were not able to win the match. Tom Ince managed to give Blackpool the lead after just 17 min on the clock. However, Curtis Davies managed to equalise things early in the second half from a corner. Birmingham did not offer a lot of attacking threat in the first half, but the improved significantly in the second half.

The manager Lee Clark has said that he is extremely happy to come away with a point from this match, which has helped them to keep their noses above the relegation zone.

Birmingham are coming into this match on the back of two consecutive defeats in the league, and the 1-1 draw helped them avoid the third one. Their recent form of just one win in the last five matches has left them in the 19th position having played 19 matches in the league. Clark has said that he is happy with the performance and the attitude of the players, who would have done well had the pitch not been as bad as it was on the night.

“We didn’t cause them enough problems, we didn’t deal with the pitch. We didn’t manage the pitch because the pitch was difficult for both teams. Blackpool did the right thing in the first half. Overall the attitude and application and defensive side of the game for the full game I was happy with. The attacking side was a big improvement in the second half,” said Clark after the match. The team will be facing big guns in the form of Wolverhampton and Crystal Palace in the next few matches.

On 22 December Birmingham City plays Burnley at St Andrews Stadium, and the home side seem to be on fire at the moment. Their recent draw with Crystal palace, from a two goal deficit, suggests that some of the struggles the club had coped with this season might be easing; there really might be light at the end of the tunnel.

A win against Burnley would help Birmingham to put a gap between itself and the teams facing possible relegation at the bottom of the championship table. Currently a Birmingham victory is priced at around 5/4 with Burnley priced at 9/4 and a draw at 12/5.
Currently Birmingham with 25 points is sixth from the bottom of the table, two points ahead of Ipswich and 7 above Bristol City, Barnsley, Sheffield Wednesday and Peterborough. In terms of possible relegation, while some bookmakers are offering 8/1 on Birmingham City being demoted, others are pricing it at around 14/1.

Fans are eagerly awaiting a return to fitness of the midfielder Darren Ambrose who has been plagued with injuries and illness ever since he was recruited from Crystal Palace last summer. He has only played five games, but in one he scored and in three others he was involved goals. Lee Clark, the Birmingham manager, said that he is still betting on Ambrose’s return to form in the near future.

Once the planned City of Birmingham Stadium is opened, Birmingham City will have the fourth largest stadium in the UK. With a seating capacity of around 55,000 only Wembley, Old Trafford and Emirates stadia are larger. It had been planned to build a upper casino within the stadium, but those plans are currently on hold while alternative locations are considered.

If is it built elsewhere, then Birmingham fans will have to content themselves with playing online on Lucky Nugget as they wind their way home from matches – this is probably already a favoured past-time of many fans considering the range of games available including football-themed slots games.

Birmingham city recently concluded the signing of the former Portsmouth midfielder Papa Bouba Diop. This is a positive addition to the squad according to the manager Lee Clark, who believes that the huge and extremely physical midfielder will certainly add to the number of options he has in this position.

The 34-year-old is one of the experienced campaigners in English football after having a lot of experience playing for Portsmouth. He has now been signed on a one-month loan deal. He has spent the last few weeks on a trial basis with the club. Lee Clark has said that he is now extremely happy that his signing has been finalised.

He will now be competing for places against the likes of the former Premier league players Hayden Mullins, Darren Ambrose, Keith Fahey, and Jonathan Specter. Due to the fact that he even has the ability to play ball on the ground, Papa Bouba Diop will provide the team with a lot of options. The 34-year-old is one of the hugely physical players in the league. His imposing stature will be a great addition to the team over the next few weeks, as they target to at least finish in the play-offs.

“He’s a very strong, physical type of player who is comfortable on the ball as well and we believe he can give us something a little bit different in that midfield area. He’s an impressive and imposing type of guy and a big central midfield player. He’s got a good pedigree and was part of the West Ham team who got promoted last year, so we’re looking for his experience and know-how and determination to help us through,” said the Birmingham manager after completing his transfer. Birmingham have made an indifferent start to the new season with only three victories in the 10 matches.

The Birmingham city manager Lee Clark has said that he is the one responsible for the 3-2 defeat suffered at the hands of Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship. Birmingham city were expected to get the better of Sheffield Wednesday in the second match of the season, but the newly promoted club stunned the Midlanders by recording a 3-2 victory.

After the match, the manager has admitted that the defeat was entirely his fault after he has made some mistakes with the tactics that allowed Sheffield Wednesday to take advantage of the weaknesses within the Birmingham city squad.

Birmingham city were coming on the back of the 1-1 draw with Charlton on the opening day of the season. They were hoping to get three points that would finally see them start of the Championship season. However, this defeat means that the club will have to wait for the match against Watford this weekend in order to get the points. Birmingham city were achieved under the managerial reign of Chris Hughton last season, but they are not expected to challenge for promotion spot this time around. The huge financial problems suffered by the club in the last few seasons has limited their ability to compete in the transfer window.

“We gave poor goals away and gave ourselves too much to do. I take full responsibility for our formation. We knew their crowd would be behind them so I went with three midfielders to dictate the midfield. Hopefully to quieten them down but it gave them momentum. When goalkeepers make mistakes, nine out of 10 times it will go in the back of the net. He will have a long career, it is how he will bounce back,” said Lee Clark after the match in which the goalkeeper Jack Butland made an error.

Birmingham city manager Lee Clark has said that he would like to make another signing in the week in order to complete the squad – idealy a Wayne Rooney type striker. Birmingham city are looking to get promotion into the Premier league despite their ongoing financial troubles.

Manager Lee Clark has made some significant changes to the squad in the summer and he has said that the web is not over yet. He has said that he is anticipating one more signing to be added to the squad before the end of the transfer window. The Championship season starts very shortly and Birmingham city want to build on the success they achieved last season.

Birmingham city managed to make it into the play-offs position under the guidance of former manager Chris Hughton, despite having a lot of financial troubles.

Even though some of the crucial members of the squad have been sold, the arrival of some important players has boosted the squad strength. In addition to this, Birmingham city are looking at the signing of James Vaughan, while they have also been linked with the Chelsea defender Ben Gordon. Lee Clark said a few weeks ago that the club are currently in talks with the European championship over a possible loan move for Ben Gordon.

“Before the end of the week I’m hoping to do a bit more business. And then I think I’d be done, unless we have to go into the market to replace anyone who goes out of the club,” said the Birmingham city manager. Birmingham recently revealed the signing of the former Manchester United striker Ravel Morrison on a season long loan deal from his current club West Ham. The striker is regarded to be one of the best young talents in English football right now. His arrival will certainly bolster the attacking options at the club.

Birmingham city manager Lee Clark has said that he does not expect to see any departures from the club in the summer. There have been rumours that the financial situation of the club means that Birmingham will have to sell a number of high profile players like Curtis Davies after failing to secure promotion last season.

Curtis Davies has been linked with a £ 5 million move to Norwich city in order to link up with the former Birmingham city manager Chris Hughton, who recently took over at Norwich. It is expected that Hughton will be coming with a £ 5 million bid for the former Aston Villa defender to keep him at Midlands.

However, the new Birmingham city manager Lee Clark has said that he does not expect to sell any of the top players because the club are not in a bad financial situation. Yet, Clark has admitted that he expects Curtis Davies to leave the club in the summer because that is the wish of the player. Clark has said that the interest of the owners to keep the best players at the club is quite clearly evident from the way they rejected the £ 6 million offer for Jack Butland.

“I haven’t been told by the board that Curtis has to go. Curtis hasn’t made a point to me he wants to go. I have had a face-to-face meeting with Curtis, he was very positive in the meeting, he has been very receptive to the training. As I have said all along, we are going to get rumours because there are good players here. I haven’t got a problem with that. All I can say is I haven’t been told by the board that, if a bid comes in, we have to accept it,” said Clark.

Birmingham city have said that manager Chris Hughton is set for a long-term vision at the club and will not be joining other clubs or entertaining their interest. West Brom have been linked with a move for the Birmingham city manager, who has done a quite remarkable job at the St Andrews.

He has been able to get the club, which has been struggling with a lot of financial problems, into the play-offs. Even though they did not make into the play-offs final, many argue that it was a great season for Birmingham city in the first place. West Brom are currently without a manager after Roy Hodgson left his post for the England managerial position.

Birmingham city lost their manager Alex McLeish in the previous summer to arch rivals Aston Villa. Now, history seems to be repeating after another archrival has approached their current manager Chris Hughton, who also did a remarkable job with Newcastle in the Premier league.

According to the Tottenham News website, the club believed that the healthy working relationship that they enjoy with both Aston Villa and West Brom could be spoilt as a result of the approaches made by either clubs in recent seasons for their manager. Meanwhile, West Brom are also hopeful that goalkeeper Ben Foster will be looking to make the switch between the arch rivals this summer on a permanent deal.

“There has been no contact, as yet. The club are continuing to work with Chris Hughton in planning for next season and any approach would not be welcome,” said a reliable source from the board at Birmingham. Birmingham city lost 3-2 to Blackpool in the play-off semi-final. Blackpool went to the play-offs final against West Ham, but could not repeat their heroics of two years ago. Chris Hughton has not yet commented on the interest from West Brom.