Birmingham City currently sit in 18th place of the table after going winless in their first five games under Wayne Rooney.
Already, pressure is starting to mount on the former England and Manchester United striker.
Birmingham City fans haven’t been impressed with what they’ve seen so far with Rooney having lost four of his first five games at the helm, drawing the other.
Blues have dropped 12 places under his watch and now sit in 18th, with the idea of a play-off push now looking like a far-fetched one.
Rooney has tried to bring about this new, ‘no fear’ style of play but so far, it hasn’t worked, and players who were performing under John Eustace are struggling under Rooney.
Siriki Dembele’s dip in form
Of all the players Blues signed in the summer, Siriki Dembele looked like one of the best acquisitions.
He immediately became a favourite among the fans for his electric performances in attack, but under Rooney, Dembele has struggled for form.
And that’s an opinion relayed by Birmingham Live journalist Brian Dick who recently wrote about the 27-year-old:
“As much as the defensive solidity has been lost under Rooney, Dembele is a player who has lost his way. He has the highest ceiling for me and I would love to see that Rooney and his coaches have spent this week finding a way to get the best out of Dembele.”
The key for Birmingham City?
Like Dick suggests, Dembele is arguably Birmingham City’s best attacking player, and so getting the best out of him is key for Rooney as he tries to make Blues more of an attacking threat.
But the Scot hasn’t started any of the last two now.
He certainly seems to have experienced a dip in form under the new boss and so too have a number of his teammates, which is definitely a worry for Rooney and Birmingham City during this difficult period.
The break will have been a blessing for both Rooney and Dembele; both need to up their games, but both can help the other.
If Rooney can work out an attacking system that suits Dembele and maybe Jay Stansfield too, then Blues could finally unlock their attacking potential and start to return to form.
This weekend’s game vs Sheffield Wednesday is a real crunch match for Blues with the Owls having won just one of their opening 16 games of the season, currently sitting in last place.
The game kicks off at 3pm on Saturday.