No Birmingham City player has suffered more than Andre Dozzell in the past five weeks since Tony Mowbray announced that he would be stepping away temporarily for health reasons.
Dozzell had just enjoyed a stellar week in Blues’ midfield with the winning goal against Blackburn and a masterclass in forward passing to orchestrate the 2-1 triumph over Sunderland. In his final press conference, Mowbray heaped praise on Dozzell, suggesting he has the ability to play at the highest level.
“He’s a young boy who I think has the talent to play in the Premier League but I don’t want him playing safe back to central defenders,” said Mowbray. “You are the midfield player with the class and the quality, you are the one playing forward passes, don’t be giving it back to them because they generally want to head it and kick it out.
“He’s got talent, he’s got a lot of scope to improve and he’s got a lovely personality about him that wants to get better. He is one player that we are trying to work with to make him feel that he’s a really crucial part of what we’re trying to do.”
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Yet, in the absence of Mowbray, Dozzell hasn’t built on those promising early showings. The messages didn’t change under Mark Venus, who started and substituted Dozzell in his first three games as interim boss.
Dozzell was taken out of the firing line for rough and ready Millwall before being recalled for Middlesbrough. An ineffective 45 minutes led to Venus hooking Dozzell at half-time and he wasn’t used against Watford last time out.
A player who has been coveted by Mowbray and Venus for five years and signed to transform Blues’ style of play has been found wanting in the grind of a relegation battle. We now eagerly wait to see how new interim manager Gary Rowett will utilise him.
If Rowett wants battlers in his midfield, Ivan Sunjic, Krystian Bielik, Gary Gardner, Paik Seung-ho and Jordan James are probably better suited. If he can accommodate an artist, Dozzell has shown that he can unlock teams with incisive forward passes.
Dozzell is only a loan player of course, although there is a good chance that his future lies in B9. BirminghamLive understands the Dozzell deal is designed to become permanent if all goes to plan.
Relegation to League One is not part of that plan, nor was the prolonged absence of Mowbray and Venus’s decision to step aside too. Dozzell has been thrown a few curveballs and his long-term future with Blues may now depend on how well he reacts to them.
