Birmingham City: Tom Wagner and Garry Cook turn to ex-Man City man | OneFootball

Birmingham City aren't in the best position when it comes to the Championship league table, but this move could be one that has massive positive effects on the club in the long-term.

Birmingham appoint former Manchester City sporting director

According to a report from The Telegraph, City have appointed ex-Man City executive Mike Rigg.

He will join the club in a month's time, and his role will be based in the academy.

They added that he has been given a: "wide brief," by the club's American owners, and a specific title of his role isn't yet known.

News of the potential hire was first reported back in early October 2023 by Football Insider, who said the club had an interest in him, and then, later than month, that they had reportedly agreed a deal for him to begin in January.

Rigg is regarded as a crucial hire, as per The Telegraph. His job with the Citizens, which lasted from 2008-2012, was to make sure that all the money that was being invested by the club's new owners was spent properly; from buying Sergio Aguero to acquiring 13-year-old Joe Hardy from Tranmere Rovers, as he told Goal.

He was heavily involved in all of the transfers at the time, including the signings of Yaya Toure and David Silva, and he identified a specific way that they would go about assessing their targets. Speaking about the Toure deal, he said, to Goal: "What we try and do is watch players in different situations – home game, away game, against the top club, against the bottom club, before a big game, after a big game, before a Champions League game."

Rigg has a very rigorous approach to talent identification and the recruitment process; something that should be useful for Birmingham once he gets his teeth stuck into the job. The former sporting director also worked for Premier League clubs like Fulham and Burnley in the past as well.

Birmingham's factory of talent

Especially in recent years, the Blues have a fantastic record of producing top talent in the footballing world. The obvious names that come to mind are Jude and Jobe Bellingham.

The England midfielder was sold by the club in 2020, when he was 17-years-old, for £25 million; the largest fee that the Blues have ever received for a player.

As a result of that deal, they also received at least £4.3 million in add-ons when Real Madrid bought the now 20-year-old in the summer transfer window.

His younger brother also made a move this summer. He left Birmingham as a 17-year-old, like his brother, to join Sunderland for £3 million, as per the Daily Mail.

Other talents to have come through the academy in recent years include former Leicester City and Everton winger Demarai Gray, who is now playing in Saudi Arabia.

Football Insider have reported that current Birmingham under-16s striker, Tobey Ugorji, is attracting attention from Premier League and Ligue 1 teams.

Rigg appointment will help Birmingham's talent cycle keep going

The club have become, rightfully, reliant on profiting from the talents that come through their youth system, and why shouldn't they? Clubs with more wealth are always going to try and snap up cheaper talents where they can, and City have proven that they can produce the best of them.

With Rigg coming in, this process shouldn't slow down. If anything, it may get ramped up a notch. The club's owners aren't short of cash, with an estimated worth of $9 billion, but having this turnover from player sales sure helps.

The appointment of the former Man City executive also shows that the new owners seem to be getting more of the big decisions right. Sacking John Eustace while they were in the play-off places, early in the season, to bring in Wayne Rooney, proved to be a big mistake. You look at where they are now, which is just outside the relegation places on goal difference alone, and you've got to wonder how things could have gone differently, had they not got that wrong.

Bringing in Rigg certainly appears to be a step in the right direction, but it's one that will garner more long-term benefits than short-term ones, which is what they're hoping their fourth manager of the season, Gary Rowett, can provide.