Birmingham City's 5 worst managers ever (Ranked) | OneFootball

Some managerial appointments have backfired badly for the Blues

Birmingham City look to be in a strong position when it comes to their managerial situation right now.

Back in the summer, the Blues found themselves looking for a new boss, after Gary Rowett's departure at the end of his short-term contract, and the club's relegation from the Championship.

The man they brought in to takeover in the St Andrew's dugout was Chris Davies, who left his role as a coach at Tottenham, to take on his first full managerial role.

Since doing that, the 39-year-old has made a strong start to life in management, immediately putting Birmingham in a position to push for an immediate promotion back to the Championship.

However, not every manager brought into the club has worked out for the Blues, with some appointments backfiring badly.

Here, we've taken a look at the ten worst Birmingham City managers based on their points per game record at the club, according to Transfermarkt.

Having initially joined the club as a coach in April 2017, Steve Cotterill departed the club just a month later at the end of the 2016/17, having helped them avoid Championship relegation.

However, he would return to St. Andrew's as manager in September 2017, following the departure of Harry Redknapp, who he had previously joined the club alongside.

But with Birmingham already struggling in the second tier, Cotterill was ultimately unable to turn things around, and was sacked in March 2018, after five straight league defeats.

In total, he won seven of his 27 games in charge of the Blues and departed with a points per game ratio of 0.96.

After 18 months out of management, Aitor Karanka returned to the game when he took charge at St Andrew's in the summer of 2020.

The Spaniard had previously won promotion from the Championship with Middlesbrough, but was unable to replicate that success in the Midlands.

Instead, he would depart Birmingham in March 2021 after winning just three of his last 19 games in charge.

That had left the club 21st in the Championship table, just three points clear of the relegation zone, with Karanka having won only 0.92 points per game while in charge of the Blues.

3 Joe Mallett

Having joined the club initially as a coach in June 1964, Joe Mallett took over as manager just a month later.

However, despite his strong reputation as a coach, things did not go as well for the former midfielder as a manager.

Birmingham were relegated from the top-flight of English football during the 1964/65 season after finishing bottom, with Mallett stepping back from managing the club in the summer of 1965.

While he would remain at the club as a coach for several more years, his points per game record as manager sits at 0.83 according to these figures.

Given the strong start they had made to the campaign, many were shocked when Birmingham sacked John Eustace and replaced him with Wayne Rooney as manager in October last year.

Indeed, that would certainly prove to be a move that backfired for the Blues, as the former Manchester United and England striker two of his 15 games in charge.

Rooney was sacked in January 2024 after less than three months in charge, with a points per game ratio of just 0.67.

By then though, the damage was done, with his appointment proving to be the catalyst for Birmingham's relegation to League One last season.

1 Gianfranco Zola

Another surprise appointment that backfired, Gianfranco Zola replaced Gary Rowett as Blues manager in December 2016.

At the time, the club sat seventh in the Championship standings, only outside the play-off places on goal difference.

Under Zola though, Birmingham would plummet down the table, and by the time he resigned in April 2017, they were 20th, just three points clear of the relegation zone.

During his time in charge, the Italian won just two of his 24 matches, as he recorded a points per game ratio of just 0.58.