Some statements do not age well, even when the era in question only amounts to 83 days. “Wayne is a born winner,” said Birmingham chairman Tom Wagner when explaining his managerial appointment. Yet Wayne Rooney won as many games in his reign as his sacked predecessor John Eustace did in his last two matches. Two, to be precise.
Rooney’s dismissal came after he reacted to defeat to Leeds by calling for Birmingham to bring in more players. It seemed to show a lack of self-awareness. The same squad that Eustace took into the Championship play-off places had the worst record in the division under him, conceding the most goals, earning the fewest points at home. “He will take Blues forward on the next stage of our journey,” Wagner said in October. Instead, he threatened to take Eustace’s buoyant team, who may have been eyeing a previously unexpected tilt at promotion to the Premier League, into League One. Which, if nothing else, would have been a journey.
