Birmingham City defender Kristian Pedersen has returned to training ahead of the club's clash with Blackpool this weekend, according to a report by the Birmingham Mail.

However, Blues manager Lee Bowyer has revealed that Marcel Oakley remains a doubt for this fixture after picking up a knock during Tuesday's 0-0 draw with Coventry City.

Oakley was substituted in the 65th minute of the game by Bowyer who opted to replace him with Juan Castillo.

Despite playing in a new role for Birmingham, Castillo managed to help his side seal a point at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

Pedersen has recently been forced to watch on from the sidelines due to a hamstring injury that he suffered during the club's 2-0 victory over Middlesbrough last month.

The 27-year-old could be in contention to start against Blackpool after making a significant amount of progress in his rehabilitation this week.

Making reference to Oakley's current issue, Bowyer has admitted that the right wing-back did not train with Birmingham today and will be assessed tomorrow ahead of the club's meeting with the Tangerines.

Speaking to the Birmingham Mail about Oakley, the Blues boss said: "Little Marcel got a knock the other night and had to come off.

"That's settling down.

"He couldn't do anything today so we'll see how that settles down tomorrow."

The Verdict

Birmingham will be hoping to call upon the services of both players this weekend as Pedersen and Oakley have managed to demonstrate some real signs of promise this season.

Utilised predominantly as a centre-back by Bowyer during the current campaign, Pedersen is averaging a relatively impressive WhoScored match rating of 6.95 in the Championship.

Meanwhile, Oakley produced an assured display against Coventry in what was only his second league appearance for the Blues.

Providing that this duo are able to step up to the mark for Birmingham this weekend, Bowyer's side could potentially pick up a morale-boosting victory at St Andrew's.