Opinion: What next for these three Blues players?

On Saturday evening following a 3-1 defeat at St.Andrew’s against Preston North End, Birmingham City announced that Harry Redknapp had parted company with the club and that he was no longer the manager.

Similarly to the news we received in December 2016 when Gary Rowett was relieved of his duties as Blues boss, many fans were shocked and a little disgruntled to hear that Redknapp has ultimately been sacked.

However, with just one win in the league this season, and with a run of six defeats on the bounce, something had to change and owners Trillion Trophy Asia made the decision to get rid of Redknapp.

Whilst most of us may not like the situation, you have to say, if Blues had continued on that downward spiral, then the motivation and the optimism around the club would have soon disappeared.

And now with the 70-year-old gone, it will be interesting to see which players make an impact in the squad.

With that in mind, here are three players who I think could rejuvenate their careers at Blues…

1. Maikel Kieftenbeld.

As a firm fan favourite, many were shocked to see Kieftenbeld seemingly sold on deadline day to the earlier mentioned Rowett and his team Derby County.

But after news broke that his transfer wasn’t completed in time, Kieftenbeld returned to Blues but with no hope of playing after Redknapp deemed him surplus requirements.

Now with Redknapp gone, it is time for the energetic Dutchman to kick on again and get himself back in the match day 18 because I feel as though he is the player that we have been missing in our midfield in the last few weeks.

He may have felt unappreciated by Redknapp but with a new manager coming in, whether that be Lee Carsley or somebody else, it is now time for Kieftenbeld to stand up and be counted because he has a real chance of reigniting his Birmingham City career.

2. Craig Gardner.

Having been either left on the bench or left out of the squad completely for the last five competitive matches, boyhood Blues fan Gardner will now be hoping that a new manager will breath life into his second stint at the club.

Of course there is an argument that Gardner was never a typical Redknapp type of player and that is why he was never played but at the end of the day, he is a fantastic passer of the ball and that creativity in midfield is something that we have missed recently.

Blues have the physical presence of Cheikh Ndoye and David Davis in the middle which comfortably complemented substitute Liam Walsh on Saturday afternoon but having Gardner’s experience is something that I feel we are lacking.

A new manager is a new chance for Gardner to impress, and he best take that opportunity.

3. Lukas Jutkiewicz.

Blues’ top goal scorer last season has had to settle for a place on the bench for the majority of this current campaign which is understandable considering the talent that has been brought into the club.

However, we shouldn’t look past the type of player that Jutkiewicz is because last season on many occasions he was our out ball. He is strong and clever when he has the ball in his possession, something which loanee Sam Gallagher is yet to learn about, so it would make sense to play experience over youth in my opinion.

It has been clear that Jutkiewicz was always going to be a plan B option for Blues this season which was disappointing to see considering how well he did last season so I believe now is his chance to really try and impress and really get his season going.