This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Keeping feet on the ground and heads out of the clouds.
That was the message that Pep Clotet presumably wanted to get across after getting back to winning ways.
Speaking after the victory over Blackburn Rovers, Clotet was asked about whether or not it was possible that the Blues could reach the top six in the Championship:
“I don’t know if we are what is required to be in the play-offs but what I know is if something can be done better, we recognise, we grow it and improve it. We go game by game.”
So it looks as if he is relatively cautious when it comes to their chances, which is somewhat admirable.
You don’t want to set expectations too high only to end up disappointed. Plus, given that Birmingham doesn’t exactly have the resources to compete with the big boys in the division, at least he’s being realistic and not getting delusions of grandeur.
However, it does come into direct opposition with some of his players, and that’s where things might get tricky.
As we have discussed previously on FFC, both Ivan Sunjic and Fran Villalba both have ambitions to play in the Premier League and that Birmingham need to get there at some stage or risk losing out on two of their bigger-name players, preferably sooner rather than later.
Whilst Birmingham may not have had the highest of expectations from outsiders at the beginning of the campaign, they are exceeding them for the time being.
However, there has to come a time where eventually he is going to have to meet the ambitions of the players and to a lesser extent the board.
It just speaks that although things might be going well off the pitch, there is still a little bit of disharmony off of it.
If not everyone is on the same page then it will just sow the seeds for problems down the road.
Eventually there is going to have to come to a point where Clotet admits that he wants the club to take a step forward. After all, some of his players are showing huge signs of ambition. He must match them.
