Birmingham City pulled further clear of their relegation-threatened rivals in the Championship on Sunday afternoon, as they ran out narrow 1-0 winners over Rotherham United. 

Harlee Dean headed home the only goal of the game with just two minutes remaining of the match, in what was a cagey clash between both teams at the New York Stadium.

The win for Lee Bowyer's side means that they're now sat 19th in the second-tier standings, and find themselves nine points clear of the relegation zone, with just four matches remaining in their 2020/21 season.

The game marked a return to action for Birmingham City midfielder Ivan Sanchez, who came on as a second-half substitute on the day against the Millers.

Sanchez had previously missed their matches against both Swansea City and Brentford, before being an unused substitute in their win against Stoke City in midweek.

The Spaniard signed for the club back in August 2020, having been a free-agent after his spell with Spanish side Elche, which came to an end at the end of the 2019/20 season.

Sanchez took to Instagram following his return from an injury lay-off, and expressed his delight at helping his team get closer to 'achieving their goal' of survival in the Championship.

Sanchez and his Birmingham City team-mates are set to return to action on Wednesday evening, when they host Nottingham Forest, in what is likely to be a closely-fought battle at St. Andrew's.

 

 

The Verdict: 

It's good to see him return to action.

I'm still not convinced that we've seen the best of Sanchez with Birmingham City still, and he'll be hoping he can make up for lost time moving forwards.

Sanchez has impressed me when he's been involved for the Blues though, and I expect him to be a key player for Lee Bowyer's side from now until the end of this year's campaign.

He'll be hoping that his recent injury problems are behind him now.