Birmingham City ended their wait for a first Championship win of the season with a 2-1 victory at Wrexham on Friday night. Chris Davies's side then followed that up with a 1-1 home draw against Southampton on Monday, results that leave the Blues 8th in the table with five points from three games.
Phil Neumann scored twice to secure a vital three points for Birmingham City at the Racecourse Ground. The defender headed in a 13th-minute opener from an Alex Cochrane cross before nodding home a second just after the hour mark from August Priske's delivery. Wrexham had equalised through Callum Doyle in the 54th minute, but a disjointed performance from the hosts allowed Birmingham to claim the win.
The victory provided a necessary response after a heavy midweek Carabao Cup defeat. Davies's team created several first-half chances, with Priske seeing a header cleared off the line and Demarai Gray having a shot deflected wide. The result ended Birmingham's winless start to the league campaign and extended Wrexham's own wait for a victory.
Birmingham City shared the points with Southampton in a 1-1 draw at St Andrew's on Monday evening. Keven Schlotterbeck gave the visitors a second-half lead with a powerful header. Birmingham responded quickly, with Priske heading in an equaliser from a Cody Roberts cross to ensure the game finished level.
Southampton manager Tonda Eckert said afterwards that he felt the match was quite even, with chances for both sides. The point keeps Birmingham unbeaten in the Championship this term, with a record of one win and two draws from their opening three fixtures.
The club now sits 8th in the Championship standings with five points. They have scored four goals and conceded three, giving them a positive goal difference of one. This leaves them four points behind early leaders Charlton Athletic.
Chris Davies will be without key players for the immediate future. Winger Demarai Gray and midfielder Marc Leonard are currently sidelined, which will test the squad's depth. The full list of unavailable players is tracked on our injuries page.
Attention now turns to a significant home fixture against Wolverhampton Wanderers on September 6. Wolves are currently second in the table, making it a tough test for Davies's squad. A positive result could see Birmingham close the gap to the automatic promotion places early in the season.
The team's defensive solidity, conceding just three league goals so far, will be key against a high-flying opponent. Birmingham City host Wolves at St Andrew's this coming Saturday.
