"A young, hungry manager" - Birmingham City told to consider League Two boss as Tony Mowbray successor | OneFootball

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk‘ series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Birmingham City should consider approaching MK Dons for head coach Mike Williamson as a replacement for Tony Mowbray.

That's according to Football League World's Blues fan pundit, Mike Gibbs, who believes that the 40-year-old's progressive style of play would work well at St. Andrew's.

It has been a difficult period for the Blues, who had appointed Mowbray as their manager back in January.

After he had initially overseen an upturn in results for the club, the 60-year-old was then forced to temporarily step back from his role with the club in February for medical reasons.

His assistant Mike Venus then took interim charge of the club, before being replaced by the returning Gary Rowett for the final run-in.

However, that was not enough to prevent Birmingham from suffering relegation from the Championship to League One.

It was then confirmed on Tuesday that Mowbray has permanently stepped back from his role with the club as he continues his recovery.

Birmingham City fan pundit names MK Dons boss Mike Williamson his preferred Tony Mowbray successor

With it now confirmed that Mowbray will not be returning to his role, the Blues now found themselves needing to find a new manager.

It has previously been reported that Steve Bruce is keen to return to St. Andrew's. Meanwhile, there have also been claims that Birmingham had placed Liam Rosenior on a shortlist of options, following his departure from Hull City at the end of the season.

However, subsequent updates stated that Rosenior is not keen on the move, and Gibbs now knows the type of manager he would like to see the club pursue to take over.

When asked by Football League World who he would like to see as the club's new manager with Mowbray not returning and Rosenior seemingly out of the running, Gibbs said: "I think my ideal replacement style-wise would be a young, hungry manager looking to play attacking football, possession-based in that sort of style.

"I think for me someone maybe of the ilk of a Mike Williamson, he obviously did an incredible job at MK Dons, I think he would be a really good shout. There's a long list in the lower leagues.

"What I really don't want, and what most Blues fans don't want, is some of the names touted that will just come and play a non-attractive style of football, the likes of Steve Bruce being mentioned again.

"Even Rowett really, I think we want someone who's going to be progressive with the ball, who can in and implement their own style of play."

After a playing career that saw him represent the likes of Newcastle United, Watford and Wolves, Williamson went into management when he became player-manager of Gateshead in June 2019.

He guided the club to promotion from the National League North to the National League in the 2021/22 season, and reached the FA Trophy final the following campaign.

Williamson left Gateshead with the club sixth in the National League in October 2023 to take charge of MK Dons.

The 40-year-old secured the Buckinghamshire outfit a spot in the League Two play-offs this season, guiding them from the bottom half of the table - only to be thrashed 8-1 on aggregate by eventual promotion winners Crawley Town in the semi-finals.

Mike Williamson could be an interesting potential Birmingham City candidate

This does seem like an appointment that may be worth considering for Birmingham City.

Williamson did a remarkable job to take Gateshead as far as he did during his time there, in what was a challenging period for clubs at that level.

He equally impressed in getting MK Dons to the play-offs this season, considering how far off the pace they were when he took over.

So with Birmingham likely to be targeting an immediate promotion next season, his experience of competing for such success could make him an appealing target.

The fact these comments suggest he would be popular with at least some members of the fanbase, may also make him tempting to consider for some of the decision-makers at St. Andrew's.

However, the collapse of his MK Dons side against Crawley over two legs feels hard to ignore, and means this appointment would not be without its risks if it was followed through, given what would be at stake for the Blues if they found themselves in the play-offs next season.