Birmingham City suffer two new injuries before Bolton Wanderers clash

Birmingham suffered two new injury blows at the weekend and are likely to be without both players for Tuesday’s trip to Bolton in League One.

Blues secured a vital 1-0 win over second-placed Wycombe Wanderers at the weekend to move 12 points clear at the summit of the league standings with a game in hand, but the result came at a cost as a duo were forced off injured.

There’s excellent squad depth for head coach Chris Davies to utilise but it’s been far from an ideal few weeks for injuries with up to eight now unavailable for the next match. The good news, at least, is that Birmingham have such a huge buffer at the top of League One and shouldn’t feel the effects of their team news woes too harshly.

Birmingham suffer two new injuries

Right-back Ethan Laird and goalkeeper Ryan Allsop are the two latest visitors to the treatment room at the Elite Performance and Innovation Centre. Laird pulled up with a hamstring issue against Wycombe on Saturday while Allsop landed awkwardly on his ankle after reaching for a cross.

Davies confirmed post-match that the injuries aren’t severe but it doesn’t sound as if either player will be available in time for the trip to Bolton.

“I think the early indication is that it’s not season-ending, that type of seriousness, but they are sore,” Davies said. “They are both going to get assessed tomorrow which will give us a clearer picture.”

One positive, at least, is the fact Marc Leonard is nearing a return nearly a month after suffering a gash below the knee during the 3-2 FA Cup defeat to Newcastle United. Keshi Anderson is another close to coming back following a hamstring strain, whereas Jay Stansfield’s leg injury isn’t anywhere near as bad as first feared – so he could come back into the fray within the next couple of weeks.

That’s unfortunately not the case for three others, however. Lee Buchanan and Scott Wright are out for the rest of the season with serious knee injuries, while Lyndon Dykes is set to miss a month or two with a calf problem.

Davies will be relieved that these issues are cropping up now rather than earlier in the campaign but they are still putting a real strain on the squad, with its depth being pushed to the limits. One silver lining, at least, is fringe players perhaps being given opportunities for game time.

Blues closing in on title

The victory over Wycombe has moved Birmingham tantalisingly close to securing promotion back to the Championship, as well as a nice piece of silverware in the form of the League One title. Blues now have a 12-point buffer to Wycombe and a 14-point gap to Wrexham and there’s also a game in hand on both.

Birmingham are not quite at the point of mathematically sealing promotion but that time shouldn’t be too far away. Barring any crazy swings in goal difference, winning the next eight matches will be enough to win the title with six games to go – and that’s if Wycombe and Wrexham maintain perfect records themselves.