Lee Bowyer has hailed his Birmingham City team for their 'excellent' reaction to his appointment.

The former Charlton Athletic boss took charge two weeks ago following Aitor Karanka's departure from the clubs and made a decent start on the pitch with three points picked up from their first two games.

With the international break upon us it has meant that the Blues have a chance to put in the hard yards in training - something that Bowyer has said it already showing its benefits.

Speaking to Birmingham Live, Bowyer said: “To get some hard hours on the training pitch has been something I had not had time to do so to have these last three or four days has been really important.

“A good reaction from the players, they have been excellent, they have taken lot on board.

“I believe that we have got a bit of everything. It’s a squad that should be doing better, I think they would say that themselves.

“What I would say is they are working hard, taking everything in and trying to put things right.

“I think moving forward they know what is expected of them and I believe they are going to do everything they can in their power to turn in around.

“I think we have seen a bit of that in the first two games. The more games go on the more you will see the type of side we will be.”

The verdict

Birmingham City will be a team to watch in the coming weeks.

Lee Bowyer's side have plenty of work to do as they look to avoid relegation and that starts this weekend with their Easter weekend double-header.

They'll need to get points on the board quickly and fans will therefore be hoping that the work done on the training ground will pay off.