Birmingham City: Big Chris Davies striker decision can seal promotion to Championship | OneFootball

Chris Davies has to give Alfie May his backing as he could fire them to promotion.

Birmingham City have so far managed to live up to their pre-season expectations, with the Blues picking up 39 points from their opening 17 games.

While this hasn't taken them into the promotion spots as yet, should they win their games in hand, they will overtake Wrexham and Wycombe to claim first place.

However, Chris Davies' side must be wary of the Red Dragons and the Chairboys, with Phil Parkinson's defensive nous and Matt Bloomfield's attacking threat sure to keep both sides in the hunt for promotion.

To address this, Davies faces an important decision regarding his attacking options.

Throughout the season, he has frequently rotated his strikers, but recent performances by Alfie May have shown his value to the team. This should see the former Tottenham Hotspur assistant coach back the 31-year-old for a sustained period.

Davies needs to support Alfie May

May was picked up by Birmingham City for a fee of around £775,000, and it seemed an astute piece of business given his previous success with Cheltenham Town and Charlton Athletic.

While the transfer didn't follow the usual pattern of targeting younger players, his three successive seasons of 20 goals and above suggested he could fire Birmingham to the Championship.

This form in the division continued in the early season, with May managing to bag in the opening four games of the campaign.

However, the deadline day arrival of Jay Stansfield for a fee in excess of £15 million disrupted May's flow, with the striker struggling to secure constant minutes as he did during the initial quartet of fixtures.

This was likely due to Stansfield's price tag weighing heavily on Davies, who thrust the multi-million signing into the limelight. This has been a success, with Stansfield netting nine in his 12 fixtures in League One this term.

However, May shouldn't be forgotten about and when they start together, the Blues look a much more balanced side.

Stockport County victory should be blueprint for campaign

Following a disappointing defeat away at bottom-of-the-table Shrewsbury Town, the subsequent three victories have seen Stansfield and May partner up in attack, with both players featuring together in the same starting XI.

The performances against Exeter and Barnsley were impressive, with Stansfield netting three goals across the two matches. However, it was the Stockport County game that truly stood out. Two trademark goals from May took them to a 2-0 win, and the team looked far more potent in attack throughout the 90 minutes.

This should encourage Davies to continue placing his trust in the pair, as they are likely to be the key difference-makers in the team's push for promotion. At present, the duo have bagged 50% of Birmingham's 32 league goals, so leaving either player out seems unjust.

With a festive period facing teams around the lower half of the table, Stansfield and May will see an opportunity to cash in, and it would be no surprise to see them significantly boost their tallies.

However, for this to happen, they both need to be afforded opportunities in the starting XI, so the ball is firmly in Davies' court.