The Birmingham City risk John Eustace must take v Norwich City: Opinion | OneFootball

There is a different feel around Birmingham City Football Club as they begin their new era.

The Blues are in their 13th consecutive season in the Championship, and most of the time it has been spent in the bottom half of the table.

They have struggled to make a significant impact despite the constant changes in managers and players.

However, there was a sense that was changing under John Eustace last season, and even though they still finished in the bottom half, they looked like a different prospect.

Over the summer, it has changed even more; the club has finally got new owners on board, and the changes Eustace made to his squad have made them look like an exciting prospect and one that has surprised a few in the early parts of this season.

When predictions were made at the start of the campaign, there may not have been many supporters, including Blues fans, that would have predicted Birmingham to be at the top end of the table after eight games.

However, that has happened to Birmingham, who were in fact unbeaten in their opening five games of the Championship season.

It has been an excellent start for the club, as they have already beaten Leeds United at home, as well as taking points against Millwall, who were play-off contenders last season and have beaten Bristol City away from home.

Many fans will have just wanted the club to climb further up the table and push on from there, but if they continue like this, they could possibly mount a surprise play-off push.

But the Blues have lost two out of their last three games and are winless in three, so heading into their game against Norwich City, Eustace must make an important call regarding Siriki Dembele.

Dembele was one of many new signings that arrived at Birmingham in the summer, with the winger looking to get his career back on track.

The 27-year-old lost his way at AFC Bournemouth, but since joining Birmingham, he looks to be slowly but surely getting back to his best football.

Dembele started the first three Championship games of the season, and in that time he grabbed his first goal for the club in the 1-1 draw with Swansea City.

He was part of the sides that beat Leeds and Bristol City, but unfortunately, he suffered an injury that saw him miss four games.

But the good news was that the forward returned to the matchday squad against QPR last Friday and came on for the final 19 minutes.

So, he may not be at his maximum capacity, but for their upcoming game against Norwich, it may be that Eustace needs to take a risk and start Dembele from the beginning as they look to end this winless run.

He has only played a little amount of football, but Dembele is already averaging a shot at goal per game as well as three dribbles per game, as his ability to beat players is clear to see, as per WhoScored.com.

The forward is also averaging a key pass a game, with 74.2% being considered successful, and he will hope that soon helps him grab more assists.

Dembele isn’t going to end the club’s winless run on his own, but with the Canaries’ confidence low after their recent result, it may be wise for Eustace to start Dembele and let the winger run at Norwich’s defence.