Former Birmingham City coach Mark Bowen is reportedly interested in becoming the club's new manager according to a recent report from Birmingham Live. 

Bowen was part of Steve Bruce's back room staff, and was with the club when they won promotion back into the Premier League in 2002 with a win over Cardiff City in the play-off final.

The Blues are now back in the Championship though, and are in real danger of dropping into the third-tier of English football this term under the management of Aitor Karanka.

It has been reported that Karanka is set to be relieved of his duties in charge of the Championship club though, after a dismal run of results.

Birmingham were beaten 3-0 by Bristol City in their most recent match, which means they remain 21st in the second-tier standings.

But that doesn't tell the full picture, with the Blues being just three points clear of the relegation zone, with Rotherham United having four matches in hand on them heading towards the final few months of this year's campaign.

Bowen is reportedly keen on succeeding Karanka in charge of Birmingham, with the Welshman looking to return to management in the near future.

His last spell in the dugout was with Berkshire-based Reading, where he guided the Royals to a 14th place finish, after taking charge of the Royals whilst they were sat 23rd in the table.

But after signing a new contract with Reading, Bowen found positive results hard to come by, and was replaced by Veljko Paunovic in the summer of 2020.

Birmingham are reportedly keen on having a new manager in place for their game against Reading on Wednesday evening, and Bowen is one of the first to register their interest in the seemingly imminent vacancy that will be available.

The Verdict: 

It could prove to be a shrewd appointment.

Bowen has already shown in the past that he can take teams clear of the relegation zone, and he really impressed me in the early stages of his tenure with Reading.

But he struggled to build on that, and was replaced before the 2020/21 season got underway. Some might feel as though Birmingham need a manager with more experience in the dugout though, with the likes of Tony Pulis being just one of the managers available at this moment in time.

We're set for an interesting few days ahead at Birmingham, as they look to rescue a disappointing campaign to date.