The balancing act

I’m going to start by giving Barnsley the credit they deserve. As a team, they competed better, passed the ball better and took their chances.

It was one of those days for Blues – a performance in which nothing went right. When you’re having a bad day at the office, it’s important to get the basics right and yesterday, that was Blues’ biggest downfall.

The passing was too often astray, the creativity was non-existent, which is usually the case with David Davis playing out wide, and the defending was poor. But Blues had their chances. Clayton Donaldson was guilty for a glaring miss in the first half, the woodwork was rattled and a few half chances were squandered.

Gary Rowett admitted his side were poor but said the scoreline flattered Barnsley and I wholeheartedly agree.

The better team won, there is no denying that. But 3-0 was a flattering result in a game that was evenly matched for long periods.

Davis, a player I like, cannot play in a wide position for the benefit of the team. His main attributes are tackling (although his sending off would suggest otherwise) and working hard, breaking play up. He can’t be criticised for not testing a full back and not swinging telling balls into the box, it’s not in his DNA. Two players on the Blues bench could do that all day long, Greg Stewart and Viv Solomon-Otabor.

While Rowett doesn’t have the luxury of hindsight, you don’t need a crystal ball to know that Davis isn’t a wide player. The work rate and energy he gives you can be offered by a player who can also cross the ball and turn the creative screw.

In their current situation, Blues suit their old 4-2-3-1 shape which is ironc given the amount of time if took Rowett to switch to a 4-4-2. The likes of Che Adams and Diego Fabbrini could give the team another dimension when playing in behind a lone striker. That will give Rowett the option of pushing Davis back inside or leaving him out of the team, when  he has served his ban of course.

The next game is one to get the juices flowing, Newcastle away. But it’ll also be a game to forget if the balance of the team isn’t right.