Alex Pritchard can be a key player in the League One promotion battle
In the 2024–2025 season, Birmingham City will usher in a new era that they would have preferred to have avoided.
The Blues will compete in English football’s third division in the next season for the first time since 1995.
This comes after they were relegated from the Championship on the last day of the previous campaign, and their last-game 1-0 victory against Norwich was insufficient to lift them out of the bottom three.
But this season, Birmingham will also need to adjust to a new manager in addition to a new tier.
Chris Davies takes charge at St. Andrew’s following relegation to League One
Amid their struggles last season, a number of different managers stepped into the dugout at St. Andrew’s.
They ended the campaign with former boss Gary Rowett in interim charge, after Tony Mowbray had been forced to step back from the role for health reasons.
It was then confirmed over at the end of the campaign that Mowbray would not be returning to the position, leaving Birmingham on the hunt for a new manager.
That has since come in the form of Chris Davies, with the 39-year-old departing his role as a coach at Premier League side Tottenham to take charge of the Blues.
Former Villa winger Marc Albrighton was employed at Leicester City by Chris Davies, the new Birmingham manager.
Davies is taking on a top managerial post for the first time, and he will undoubtedly face pressure because many Birmingham players want to return to the Championship as soon as possible.
If Davies hopes to flourish with the Blues next season, there is a contention that he needs to make the most of one specific player on the St Andrew’s roster.
Alex Pritchard could be key to Birmingham City promotion push
Alex Pritchard was one of the players who moved to the Midlands during the January transfer window of this year.
For an undisclosed sum, the attacking midfielder—who had previously played for Sunderland under Mowbray—arrived.
Pritchard committed to St Andrew’s for two and a half years, ensuring his stay until the end of the 2025–2026 campaign.
However, due to injury, the 31-year-old’s contribution was slightly limited during Birmingham’s Championship relegation in the second half of last season.
| Alex Pritchard 2023/24 Championship stats for Birmingham City – from WhoScored | |
|---|---|
| Appearances | 9 |
| Goals | 0 |
| Shots per Game | 0.8 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Pass Success Rate | 74.2% |
| Key Passes per Game | 0.4 |
| Dribbles per Game | 0.3 |
But with a contract that guarantees him a spot at the team and a full preseason under his belt, he should be healthy and prepared to contribute more to the Blues in 2024–2025.
Given Pritchard’s prior experiences, Davies will undoubtedly try to take advantage of that as he seeks to lead the team back into the Championship.
The offensive midfielder was a League One player when he initially signed with Sunderland in the summer of 2021.
But they would earn a much-needed promotion back to the Championship in Pritchard’s first season at The Stadium of Light.
In fact, the attacking midfielder played a significant role in that victory, helping Sunderland win promotion with four goals and 13 assists, including two in the play-offs.
As a result, it is evident that on the back of that, Pritchard has both the quality and experience needed to help a side win promotion from League One and back to the Championship.
With that the task now set to Davies at Birmingham, it would surely make sense for him to look to make Pritchard into a key man for the Blues in the coming campaign.
That way, he has the chance to make both a similar individual impact to what he did with Sunderland the last time he played at that level, and help guide the rest of the squad through the pressure of such expectation.
With that in mind, it seems the signing of Pritchard that was made even before his arrival, could be a major boost for Davies as he looks to take Birmingham City back to the Championship.
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