The legendary former England and Manchester United star has experienced a tough start to his tenure as the Blues’ manager, losing his first two matches in charge. These defeats followed his recent appointment to replace John Eustace.
His initial match resulted in a 1-0 loss to Middlesbrough, followed by a 2-0 defeat against Hull City. As the team and Rooney made their way down the St Andrews tunnel after the Hull match, a portion of the fans expressed their frustration through boos.
In a particularly distressing incident, one fan reportedly shouted an offensive remark at Rooney, suggesting he should return to America.
Curiously, John Eustace, aged 43, was let go despite achieving back-to-back victories that had propelled Birmingham to the sixth spot in the Championship table.
This decision has generated significant discontent among St Andrews fans regarding Rooney’s underwhelming initial performance.
Recognizing the fans’ dissatisfaction, Rooney implored them to exercise patience as he strives to instil his football philosophy in the Birmingham players.
In an interview with Sky Sports, Rooney stated, “Be patient. I get it, I understand.”
“They parted ways with a very popular manager who did a good job in stabilising the club, so I understand a bit of frustration, of course I do.”
“But we need to realise where we’re trying to go. Not where we are now, where we’re trying to go.”
“That’s our aim, that’s our ambition and that’s what we’re hoping to achieve.”
“My first line to the players is that we’re going to try and play in a different way, which might be a bit uncomfortable for some of you.”
“If you’re not comfortable with it, please tell me.”
“What you don’t want to do… Of course, you want to change how we want to play, I’m very open and clear on what I’m saying on that.”
“What I don’t want to do is put someone completely out of their comfort zone, which I probably think the last two games, in terms of building out from the back, we have been. So that’s something for me to adjust.”
“Then obviously throughout January, throughout the summer you start building your squad for what you want.”
“But that’s not saying that the players now don’t have an opportunity to show me what they can do and that they’re on board with that. The players have been great from that point of view.”
Rooney also stressed “We need to get better on game management, on decision-making, that needs to improve a lot.”
“For me now this is an opportunity for me to prove myself as a coach here at Birmingham, to get Birmingham out of the Championship.”
Looking ahead, Rooney’s team is set to face Southampton in their next Championship fixture as they seek their first win under his leadership.
Southampton currently holds the fifth position in the league with 21 points and is playing well under the guidance of Russell Martin.
A victory for Birmingham in this upcoming match would see them surpass Southampton in the standings based on goal difference.
Birmingham City performance and stats
Birmingham City is currently 13th in the Championship with 18 points.
In the last 13 games, it has won 4 times, drawn 4 times, and lost 5 times. In its last match, Birmingham City lost 0-2 against Hull City.
It has a positive goal difference after scoring 15 goals and conceding 14.
Birmingham City will play the next match in Championship against Southampton on Saturday 28th of October in Southampton. The prediction is Southampton winning the match.