Birmingham City fans were living on cloud nine after their side’s electric start to League One life, but have been knocked back down a peg or two somewhat after their last league clash.
Chris Davies’ Blues picked up their first league defeat of the season away at Charlton Athletic, as a Matt Godden strike for the Addicks early into the second half proved to be the difference between the two teams, with Nathan Jones’ hosts boasting a huge scalp for the division at full-time.
It is unlikely that this loss will cause the wheels to come off at St. Andrew’s, but it’s a big wake-up call all the same for the Birmingham boss when it comes to ongoing team selections, with Willum Thór Willumsson noticeably way off his high standards in the slim 1-0 defeat.
Willumsson's start at Birmingham
The Iceland international was seen as a major coup this summer, away from the high-profile purchases of Jay Stansfield to name a few, with the ex-Go Ahead Eagles midfielder joining the ranks at the Blues after starring in the Eredivisie – where he scored seven league goals last season.
He has shown his obvious class for the League One promotion chasers in spurts so far, with two goals and two assists picked up in the league action from nine games, which included scoring this well-worked team goal to kickstart a comeback against Peterborough United at the end of last month.
Away from these heroics, however, Willumsson struggled against Charlton – much like the rest of his flat teammates – who might well have thought the league was becoming too much like a walk in the park.
The 25-year-old would only last 61 minutes on the pitch at the Valley before being hooked off by Davies, with Willumsson only completing 24 accurate passes in a passive display, that also saw the lofty 6 foot 4 star fail to register a single shot on the opposition goal.
There will be an inquest going on now in the West Midlands as to why they fell to a surprise defeat on the road, with Davies then changing his side up accordingly, but there will be no Jordan James for the ex-Tottenham Hotspur assistant manager turned Blues boss to call upon.
Selling James to Rennes could prove to be a major regret down the line for the Blues, with the Welshman’s transfer value already increasing in France, despite playing very limited minutes so far.
James' value away from Birmingham
Sold for £4m to the Ligue 1 club this summer, James’ value now stands at a heftier £7.1m – according to Football Transfers – only a matter of months on from his Birmingham departure.
In contrast, Willumsson is worth a lesser £4.3m back playing in England.
That’s the case despite James finding it hard to make a name for himself at his new employers to date, with only three games coming his way in total in league action, all from off the bench late on.
Position played
Games played
Goals scored
Assists
CM
18
1
1
DM
16
0
0
AM
15
3
1
RM
9
0
0
LM
9
2
0
Away from his value surprisingly going up, despite finding himself on the periphery at Rennes, Davies and Co will also be regretting the sale of James based on his adaptability in the midfield positions being a useful asset, especially when the team needs a refresh after a sobering loss.
James could even have slotted into the side in place of Willumsson if he was still donning a Blues strip, with the Scandinavian midfielder below-par in attacking midfield versus the Addicks, where the former homegrown product used to shine when playing at St. Andrew’s.
Birmingham supporters would have loved to have seen their former 20-year-old gem strut his stuff in the third tier over leaving for France, after being referred to as a “Rolls Royce” style player last campaign by podcaster Jordan Webber.
But, that wasn’t to be, as the Blues aim to now bounce back from that single league loss next to their name when travelling to Lincoln City after the international break.
Sold for £6.3m: Birmingham hit gold with ace who's now worth millions less
Birmingham City would have been glad to just get this player off their books.
1 ByKelan Sarson