Experienced former manager Tony Pulis has offered his thoughts on Birmingham City and believes they need to be playing Premier League football to justify huge investment
Birmingham City have re-signed winger Demarai Gray
Birmingham City have re-signed winger Demarai Gray
Former West Bromwich Albion manager Tony Pulis believes the 'doom and gloom' years are over for Birmingham City - but has warned them that in order to progress, they need to achieve promotion to the Premier League.
The much travelled 67-year-old knows a thing or two about the Championship and managed the likes of Stoke City, Crystal Palace and Plymouth Argyle.
In a recent interview with Fruity King, he spoke about the rollercoaster ride Blues have been on in recent years a period of time which has seen plenty of tough times for the club and supporters.
He said: "When Birmingham got relegated a couple of years back, it was all doom and gloom, now there's a complete and utter change in the direction, both on and off the pitch. When you look at the club now, there's so much positivity that has been gained from getting promotion last year and they did it in a good manner.
"They've done it in a way that has really, really excited the supporters there. When you listen to how the fans talk about the club, the owners and the infrastructure – it all really bodes well for an exciting future
" There's such a buzz around Birmingham. It'll be great to see how they perform, what players they bring in and how it all develops. Very, very exciting times for Birmingham City."
Birmingham City have re-signed winger Demarai Gray
Birmingham City have re-signed winger Demarai Gray
Pulis cited the £3bn investment into the sports quarter development. He claimed that if the club were going to spend that much money on the development of their infrastructure, they will want to be playing in the Premier League to generate funds.
The Welshman, who was last in charge at Sheffield Wednesday in 2020, spoke about several of the personalities at St Andrew's and was quick to pay tribute to the 'fantastic job' done by Craig Gardner.
He also praised Jay Stansfield for his tireless work ethic and his passion to help Birmingham succeed on the pitch. He encouraged the coaching staff to get the player near the opposition's goal posts because 'he is a goal scorer, his record shows that.'
He believes Demarai Gray is an 'exciting signing' who is a good player with the caveat of having played for England. Pulis suggested that the club will make some signings over the next couple of weeks that will 'bring the expectations up again'.
But the former Stoke boss who managed the Potters for over 450 games also warned against complacency stating that the expectations of supporters needs to be measured in a league where nothing is a sure thing. With the right players, he feels Blues will be competitive and will be a top six club when the end of the season arrives.
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