The 2010–11 season was Birmingham Citys seventh season in the Premier League and their 57th in the top tier of English football. It ran from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011. Led by former Scotland national team manager Alex McLeish, the team finished in 18th place in the league, thus being relegated to the Championship for the next season. They reached the sixth round of the FA Cup, losing to Bolton Wanderers, but did win the League Cup, their first major trophy since 1963, by beating favourites Arsenal 2–1 in the final with goals from Nikola Žigić and Obafemi Martins. This win brought the club qualification for the next season's Europa League, their first appearance in any European competition since 1961. The top scorer for the season was Craig Gardner with ten goals in all competitions, of which eight were in the Premier League. McLeish resigned as manager on 12 June 2011, and later joined local rivals Aston Villa on 17 June.
Pre-season Following Hong Kong-based businessman Carson Yeung's takeover of the club in 2009, Birmingham travelled to China for their 2010–11 pre-season tour. They began with a 3–2 victory against a Hong Kong League XI to win the inaugural Xtep Cup. The winning goal was scored by Garry O'Connor, set up by debutant Nikola Žigić from a Stuart Parnaby cross. In the second match, O'Connor scored the only goal of the game against Beijing Guoan on a dreadful pitch in the Bird's Nest Stadium, and Birmingham then beat Liaoning Whowin with goals from O'Connor and Sebastian Larsson to achieve a hat-trick of victories over Chinese opposition. While in China, club officials and players were involved in promotional activities including attending the launch in Beijing of the 2010–11 kit, supplied for the first time by Chinese manufacturer Xtep.
Back on home soil, Birmingham continued their good form at Pride Park, where they beat a Derby County side featuring former Blues midfielder Robbie Savage. The following day, a Birmingham XI including first-team players rested for the match against Derby drew 2–2 against Northampton Town, conceding a late header from Liam Davis. Birmingham came from two goals down to beat Milton Keynes Dons. James McFadden missed a first-half penalty, but two second-half goals from Cameron Jerome and an 88th-minute winner from O'Connor were enough to see off the League One opposition. Mallorca, the visitors for the only home friendly of the 2010 pre-season, inflicted Birmingham's only defeat with a goal from Emilio Nsue. Craig Gardner played in an unfamiliar right-back position with both Stephen Carr and Stuart Parnaby injured.
+Pre-season friendly match detailsDateOpponentsVenueResultScoreF–AScorersAttendanceReport18 July 2010Hong Kong League XIAW3–2Dann 21', Gardner 74', O'Connor 89'13,62621 July 2010Beijing GuoanAW1–0O'Connor 82'24 July 2010Liaoning WhowinAW2–0O'Connor 18, Larsson 38'31 July 2010Derby CountyAW2–1Murphy 31', Larsson 46'4,4581 August 2010Northampton TownAD2–2Jerome 50', McFadden 68'1,6173 August 2010MK DonsAW3–2 Jerome (2) 53', 78', O'Connor 88'5,8967 August 2010MallorcaHL0–110,190
Premier League
August Birmingham opened their Premier League campaign with a visit to Sunderland. Garry O'Connor returned to the team after two operations on a chronic hip problem caused him to miss most of the previous season, and goalkeeper Ben Foster made his debut. Captain Stephen Carr fouled Fraizer Campbell to concede a penalty which Darren Bent converted, though the foul appeared to have been committed outside the penalty area. Home captain Lee Cattermole had already avoided punishment for cutting O'Connor's head open with an elbow, but still received two yellow cards and was sent off before half-time. Carr doubled Sunderland's lead with an own goal when an attempted headed clearance looped over Foster. Alex McLeish brought on new signing Nikola Žigić, who "injected a note of panic hitherto undetected" in the home team's defence as Sebastian Larsson's crosses produced goals from Scott Dann and a late equaliser from Liam Ridgewell after a goalmouth scramble.
Žigić marked his first start, at home to Blackburn Rovers, by pulling Christopher Samba's shirt to concede a penalty. After Foster saved Morten Gamst Pedersen's spot-kickone of many saves in a man-of-the-match performanceBlackburn took the lead. Craig Gardner equalised three minutes later with a tap-in from James McFadden's cushioned volley, and after Nikola Kalinić had hit the post, Gardner scored the winner in the second half with a shot. Matt Derbyshire, on loan from Olympiacos, made his debut as a second-half substitute.
In an eventful visit to Bolton Wanderers, Birmingham took an early lead after a passing move involving McFadden, Lee Bowyer and Cameron Jerome was finished by Roger Johnson with his first goal for the club. After 36 minutes, Johnson fouled goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen as both competed for a bouncing ball. As the players got to their feet, Jääskeläinen slapped Johnson across the face and was sent off. Five minutes into the second half, McFadden's cross was headed down by Jerome for Gardner to score a scrappy goal at his second attempt. Bolton pulled one back from the penalty spot after Johnson was judged to have fouled Gary Cahill, then with ten minutes left, a foul was given against Barry Ferguson, who had appeared to be squeezed between two Bolton players. From just outside the penalty area, former Birmingham forward Robbie Blake struck a superb free kick to tie the scores. There were late chances for both sides but the score remained 2–2. BBC Sport reporter suggested that "Birmingham's flickers of poise and invention" were "positive signs" for the season to come. Contract talks with Alex McLeish broke down, leading acting chairman Peter Pannu to deny reports of a "bust-up," and contract talks with Sebastian Larsson resumed.
September McFadden and Ferguson were instrumental as Birmingham extended their unbeaten Premier League home record to 17 matches with a goalless draw with Liverpool. Pepe Reina kept the visitors in the game with a succession of fine saves from Jerome, Gardner and others. In the run-up to the visit to West Bromwich Albion, McFadden suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury which was to keep him out for the season, football consultant Sammy Yu left the club, and McLeish signed a new three-year contract. The home side appeared to have no answer to Jerome's early goal, but Roberto Di Matteo brought Graham Dorrans on at half time, moved Peter Odemwingie from the wing to play up front, and the game was transformed. Odemwingie forced an own goal off Scott Dann and scored a second as Albion won 3–1. Bowyer was substituted to avoid the likelihood of his being sent off, and the player had to apologise after a foul-mouthed exchange with a female supporter.
At home to Wigan Athletic, the unbeaten home run extended to a day short of 12 months. A dull game was enlivened by an altercation between Johnson and Hugo Rodallega for which both were booked, the skills of Charles N'Zogbia and the home supporters' adverse reactions thereto, Jerome missing chances, and Gardner's reckless tackle on Franco Di Santo for which he was sent off.
October Having gone 18 top-flight games unbeaten to equal the club record, Birmingham made little impression as Everton won their first match of the season. After Johnson's mistake allowed Yakubu in, Foster took enough pace off his shot to give Ridgewell time to make a goalline clearance, but Johnson then gave Everton the lead when he prodded Leon Osman's cross past Foster, and Tim Cahill's stoppage-time header doubled their advantage.
Two weeks later, Birmingham took the lead through a Žigić header, Arsenal equalised from the penalty spot after Marouane Chamakh went down after minimal contact from Dann, and Chamakh himself scored the winner just after half time. On a day when manager Arsène Wenger used his programme notes to highlight the problem of reckless tackling, England hopeful Jack Wilshere was sent off for a two-footed lunge on Žigić, and Emmanuel Eboué was fortunate to escape a red card for a scissors tackle on Ridgewell.
At home to newly promoted Blackpool, whose attacking style had earned them the best away record in the Premier League, Birmingham played them at their own game, with Alexander Hleb given a free role behind O'Connor and Žigić, and outclassed them 2–0. The goals came from Ridgewell's close-range header after Žigić had headed against the bar, and from Žigić himself after Charlie Adam gave the ball away. The Guardian reporter suggested that "if City had had more pace and movement up front than was offered by Garry O'Connor and Nikola Zigic, they would have won by five or six."
In an improvement for Birmingham on the last time the clubs met, they had the better of a goalless draw at Aston Villa. The referee missed a clear handball by Nigel Reo-Coker; the same player could have been sent off for "kicking his former team-mate (Gardner) up the backside". Jerome passed to goalkeeper Brad Friedel with Žigić unmarked in the box, and Ashley Young could have won the game for Villa right at the end with a shot that came off the angle of post and bar.
November West Ham United co-owner David Gold, formerly Birmingham's co-owner, was banned from attending the clubs' meeting on 6 November for referring to vice-chairman Peter Pannu in the press as "disgusting." The club later accepted Gold's apology. On the field, Birmingham played the diamond formation that had been effective against Blackpool. Apart from the sprinklers suddenly coming on soon after kickoff, the highlight of the first half was Foster's fine save to tip a short-range shot from Carlton Cole onto the post. Early in the second half, West Ham took a two-goal lead and nearly scored a third when Victor Obinna's shot from distance hit the woodwork. After Gardner and Beauseajour replaced Hleb and Keith Fahey, Birmingham came back to draw with a Jerome goal from a Žigić knockdown and a characteristic Ridgewell tap-in when Robert Green failed to gather a Larsson free kick. They could have won it late on when Jerome's shot was deflected on to the crossbar by Danny Gabbidon, and West Ham's penalty appeal against Jean Beausejour for shirt-pulling was turned down.
Birmingham went two goals down at Stoke City, but came back to equalise with a shot from Fahey and a glancing header by Jerome from a Larsson cross, and Gardner forced two saves from Asmir Begović. Stoke manager Tony Pulis had spoken out before the game about referees' decisions repeatedly going against them; this time, match referee Mark Clattenburg failed to notice a handball in the build-up to Dean Whitehead's winning goal for the home side. The defending improved at Manchester City. The nearest the home side came to scoring was when Carlos Tevez handled the ball into the net and when Foster blocked a James Milner shot and man-of-the-match Stephen Carr cleared the rebound off the line.
Bowyer, replacing the injured Gardner, stole unmarked into the penalty area to meet a Jerome knockdown and take a 17th-minute lead at home to Chelsea. Thereafter, Foster, criticised for his performance for England against France in midweek but now "defiance personified," made numerous saves including one where he "somehow clawed out a Didier Drogba header that was flying in the far corner," as Chelsea failed to score from 32 shots at goal. Away at Fulham, Hleb made a strong run through midfield to the penalty area and played a pinpoint pass which gave the onrushing Larsson time to set himself and pass the ball into the net for his first goal of the season. After Clint Dempsey arguably climbed on Fahey's shoulders to head the equaliser, Birmingham came close to regaining the lead when Dann's header from a Larsson cross hit the bar, but lost Hleb to a hamstring injury.
December