This article is part of Football League World's 'The Verdict' series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Birmingham City's struggles continued as they were beaten 3-2 by promotion-chasing AFC Bournemouth on Saturday evening.

The Blues have only won once in their last 11 matches in all competitions, which has seen Aitor Karanka's side drop into the relegation zone in the Championship.

Speaking on EFL On Quest, former West Ham and Norwich City forward Dean Ashton issued his thoughts on Birmingham's struggles, and was concerned that they don't have the quality to work themselves out of the bottom-three.

"I thought they were a bit more on the front foot today. I know they scored two today, but they struggle to score goals. They’ve won one in 11 and they’re meandering into the relegation zone. There doesn’t seem to be the quality to get them out of it."

The Blues are set to return to action on Saturday, when they host Luton Town, in what could prove to be a potentially tricky test up against the Hatters.

But can we see Birmingham City being relegated this season under the management of Aitor Karanka?

We discuss...

Phil Spencer:

There's no doubt that Birmingham City are in big trouble this season.

Results are proving hard to come by for Aitor Karanka's side and that has seen them slide down the table.

The fact that they're now in the bottom three in a big concern.

Whether they'll have enough to keep their heads above water remains to be seen, but I'm fully expecting the Blues to be in the basement battle come the end of the season.

Ben Wignall:

Despite finding their scoring boots against Bournemouth at the weekend, I think Birmingham have a huge chance of going down.

They have been struggling to put wins and goals together and the £2million signing of Sam Cosgrove from Aberdeen may help them have a focal point up-front, but if they can't defend then it won't get them anywhere.

What will also be a worry is that teams around them in the last few months are going on good runs and picking up points. Nottingham Forest are starting to rise up the table, Wayne Rooney has improved Derby County and Rotherham are in great form right now.

Aitor Karanka is taking the Blues the other way though. Some sections of the fanbase have already lost patience with the Spaniard and change may be needed if the Birmingham board want to save their season.

 

 

Jake Sanders: 

Whilst there's still a long way to go, the alarm bells will definitely be ringing at St Andrew's.

One victory in 11 Championship matches is concerning, but six league wins since Aitor Karanka became manager is extremely worrying.

Everything that the Blues are currently doing spells out relegation. They're conceding far too many, are struggling up the other end, and haven't won at home since 28 October against Huddersfield Town.

However, Birmingham still have every chance of avoiding relegation, but with the likes of Derby County, Rotherham and Sheffield Wednesday all picking up points at a frequent rate, Karanka's team need to get some wins and points on the board quickly, otherwise they'll be cut adrift.