The Colin Tattum Column: What next for Birmingham City?
THE more things change, the more they stay the same.
And here are Blues again, back in the Premier League.
But what happens next? Survival, or a 12-month respite before another Championship slog?
Blues have created some kind of modern record by finishing runners-up in the Championship, namely the first team to achieve back-to-back relegation and promotion in four consecutive seasons.
And, apparently, they have now flitted more times – 12 – between England’s top two divisions than any other club.
Not that it’s something to shout about, of course, however interesting it makes following the club. Never a dull moment and all that.
Sure, promotion is not to be sniffed at. Especially considering the suffocating pressure Blues are always under as the supposed big boys in the Championship.
But it shouldn’t be followed by what seems to be an acceptance that Blues are now cannon fodder for the rest in the Premier League.
If anything the powers that be, the playing staff and management should wonder just how do they want to be judged – as the classic example of the yo-yo side, the in-betweeners, or a credible, bona fide Premier League outfit?
After winning the play-off in 2002, Blues finished 13th in the Premier League then 10th, their best ever placing in 31 years.
