Birmingham City announced the shock departure of manager, Garry Monk on Monday evening.

The former Blues boss had taken them to a 17th placed finish in the Championship, which is impressive after they also had a nine-point deduction for a breach of EFL profitability and sustainability rules. 

But there evidently wasn’t something right behind the scenes at St Andrew’s which has resulted in Monk leaving the club.

It has been reported by We Are Birmingham that Monk's assistant, Pep Clotet has been offered the managerial role on a permanent basis heading into next season, which gets underway in August.

Clotet doesn’t have any experience of managing in senior football which will surely be concerning for Birmingham supporters, who will have been keen to see a more experienced boss appointed as Monk’s successor.

It is also claimed that Xavi Calm will be appointed as Birmingham's under 23's manager.

It’s set to be an interesting summer ahead at Birmingham, with this being the second high-profile departure already.

Jota recently left St Andrew’s to move to local rivals, Aston Villa.

Che Adams continues to be linked with a move to the Premier League, with Southampton seemingly the favourites to land his signature in the near future.

So, it’s far from ideal preparation for another season in the Championship, and if you’re a Birmingham supporter, then you’ve got every right to be concerned heading into next year’s campaign.

The Verdict:

What a mess this is.

The club will live to regret sacking Monk and bringing in Clotet as his replacement seems like a panic move to me.

Surely Birmingham need a manager that knows the Championship well and knows how to get a team into the top six.

I fear they could be sucked into a relegation battle next season if the departures continue over the summer.