“We need a new…” – Birmingham City and Tony Mowbray told to replace mainstay this summer’

This summer will be Birmingham City’s biggest ever, marking Tony Mowbray’s first off-season as manager of St Andrew’s.

In the end, the former Sunderland manager has a lot of significant choices to make about people with questionable futures in the Second City between now and June.

This is true even though the seasoned head coach has to allay any short-term concerns about the team being down to League One for the first time since 1994.

Mowbray, who last month added three new players to the Blues roster in a short amount of time, will undoubtedly have the support of the team’s American owners, Tom Wagner and NFL legend Tom Brady.
Between the sticks is one area that could be identified as a priority during the summer transfer window, as Mowbray presently has the seasoned pair of Neil Etheridge and John Ruddy at his disposal.

But according to Mike Gibbs, one of our Blues fan pundits, the team ought to start looking for a younger number one right away.

“I think we need to find a new number one in the summer,” he said. “I think if you look at the style of play that the board are trying to move forward with, certainly the one which Tony Mowbray wants, you’re probably looking at a younger keeper who can grow with the team but are very good with their feet – almost as a sweeper keeper.”