Birmingham City’s start to the 2026/27 season has been less than ideal, particularly following a slow summer transfer window at St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park.

Blues have recently emerged as one of the Championship’s top stories, thanks in large part to the significant noise made by American investment group Knighthead Capital Management.

Tom Wagner, Tom Brady, and co. have been able to restore optimism in this part of the Second City after a previously bleak past, and while the goal is for the club to return to the Premier League for the first time since May 2011, recent months would suggest that they have perhaps hit their first major lull since being relegated to League One two summers ago.

As a result, Chris Davies’ stay has been quite mixed thus far, with the 41-year-old receiving much of plaudits for the way his club blew the third tier out of the water, both on and off the pitch, en route to a 111-point total.

But, fast forward to the present, and Friday night’s game against Wrexham in North Wales is already being regarded as a must-win by many fans, with Birmingham’s manager feeling the heat once more.

Birmingham City’s start in 2026/27 has been lacklustre.

Birmingham had a mixed season in 2025/26, with many pre-season forecasts putting the club as a play-off candidate, but Davies’ side were rarely, if ever, mentioned on the pitch.

Despite the fact that the club’s top-six ambition had ended by March, the Blues had a great final month of the season, going five games unbeaten, and finishing 10th was their best result in ten years.

However, with the play-offs enlarged from four to six teams, there was hope that the Midlands club would be able to telegraph their intentions early in the season, but this has yet to occur.

Two draws against Sheffield United and Bristol City – one goalless and one requiring a 95th-minute Demarai Grey to salvage a point – had dampened early optimism, along with only a handful of additions, before concerns were raised about Davies’ overall squad quality and, according to some, his managerial credentials following Tuesday’s EFL Cup defeat to Brentford.

Birmingham City must act in the transfer window’s final days.

In recent transfer windows, Birmingham have signed a slew of new players, including 14 when they returned to the Championship last season.

There was no need for a similar amount of signings in this window, but the past three matches have shown that more depth and quality are required, particularly in offensive areas.

While Demarai Grey has been used as a substitute following an injury-plagued pre-season, Jay Stansfield has started games as a left-winger, which has hampered his effectiveness in many ways, meaning the Blues must act quickly to rectify this issue, and they are now linked with Herba Guirassy of FC Nantes.

Furthermore, Paik Seung-ho has become the latest player to fill a void in the ‘number 10’ position, with Birmingham now targeting Anis Mehmeti and Adrian Segecic, the latter of whom has impressed for Portsmouth in the last year.

Calls for Chris Davies’ dismissal are nothing new at Birmingham City.

In actuality, sack cries from certain Birmingham fans for Davies are not uncommon at this time, with the former Tottenham Hotspur assistant receiving numerous calls during the season.

As recently as April, it was claimed that Davies was on the verge of losing his first managerial job and being replaced by former midfielder Lee Carsley and Thomas Frank, although such plans did not materialise.

Chris Davies’ Birmingham City Record (as of 27/08/26).

Matches

Win percentages: 114, 64, 24, 26, 56%.

While majority owner Wagner recovers from a stroke in February, he has previously expressed confidence in Davies to lead Blues to success, ironically ahead of their recent trip to Wrexham.We’re focused on process, and I’m certain that the method he’s pursuing will pay off and that we will compete. “The vast majority of people understand that,” Wagner stated in October.

Chris Davies will hope that Birmingham City’s strong Wrexham record continues.

With Friday’s game considered as a must-win for Birmingham at the end of August, its disgruntled fans may find solace in the fact that their record against Phil Parkinson’s side over the last two seasons has been rather strong.

Blues have won both matches at St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park, 3-1 and 2-0, and while they have yet to win in North Wales under Davies, they have held Wrexham to consecutive 1-1 draws.

The latter occurred, of course, 10 months ago, when Patrick Roberts opened his account for the club with an equaliser in reaction to George Dobson’s early opener in a difficult match.

However, three draws in the first three games would only put more pressure on Davies, despite Wrexham’s identical start to the season.