Birmingham City boss Steve Cotterill can’t seem to accept his own fate.
The position of being Birmingham City’s manager is one that has been something of a poisoned chalice over the last few years, and yet somehow, Steve Cotterill has managed to take things to a whole new level.
The 53-year-old, whose greatest success as a manager came when he took a highly favoured Bristol City team back up to the Championship, has been able to transform himself into the most hated man in the second city – and it only took him a few months.
The evidence was always there regarding his abilities as a manager at this level, with his stubbornness being something that led to failures at several of the clubs he has been in charge of over the years.
However, things have come to the boiling point, with his shortcomings being highlighted for all to see over the course of yet another dreadful season for Birmingham City Football Club.
It is obvious from an outsider’s perspective that he has lost the dressing room, and it is hardly surprising when you analyse his press conferences. There never seems to be any kind of drive or passion behind his responses to the media or his opinions on how the club is being run, and on the pitch, it is even worse.
The Blues have arguably the best squad out of any of the teams down in the relegation battle, but they are so tactically inept at this stage due to the uninspiring management of Cotterill. There is never any urgency in what they are trying to do in the final third, and it highlights the fact that once his plan A has not worked out, there is no plan B.
The worst part of it all, though, is that he cannot bring himself to share any of the blame for what is currently happening. Not only has he turned on his fellow managers who he believes would not be able to do any better, but he has also turned on the fans who he is supposed to be trying to get on his side right now.
The protests are coming, and they are completely justified.
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