Championship

LEE BOWYER has been confirmed as the new boss of Championship strugglers Birmingham City.Brum sacked Aitor Karanka after Saturday’s 3-0 defeat to Bristol City left them 23rd in the second tier.
Lee Bowyer has been appointed new manager of Birmingham City after leaving CharltonCredit: PA
Now they have turned to their former midfielder, who quit his job at Charlton over the weekend, to save them from the drop.
The 44-year-old, who has agreed a deal with Birmingham until June 2023, said: “I’m absolutely delighted and it’s great to be back.
“I’ve already seen some of the old faces from when I was here last and I’m just really looking forward to getting to work.
“My priority is to lift everybody. Not just the players, the staff as well. It seems like it’s not been in a very good place, so I’ve got to lift them.
“I’ve got to try and implement what I want very quickly. The team will improve, I have no doubt about that but we already have a good base to work with.
“I’m gutted the fans aren’t here because I know the part they would play.
“When I was here as a player it was an unreal atmosphere. I know how important they are but unfortunately we can’t change that.
“We have to pull together as a club to make sure we are in this division next season so the fans can come back and appreciate what we do in this short space of time.”
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Bowyer took charge of training on Tuesday and will be in the dug-out for Wednesday’s home match against Reading.
Birmingham said details of his backroom team will be confirmed shortly, but CEO Dong Ren is delighted to get his man.
He said: “I would like to welcome Lee to Birmingham City Football Club.
“He is a coach who has been on our radar for some time now and as a former player he knows exactly what it means to be a part of this Football Club.
“We believe he is the man to take us forward, initially in achieving our short-term goal of staying in the Championship and then further into the future as well.
“We are delighted that Lee has joined us at this important stage of the season and we are all committed to ensuring that he and the team are a success.”
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NEIL WARNOCK hopes Nathaniel Mendez-Laing can be Middlesbrough’s promotion wildcard – even without a promise of a contract extension.
The winger, 28, came off the bench to grab his first goal for the club to add to Grant Hall and Paddy McNair’s earlier strikes against Stoke.

Boro are hoping Nathaniel Mendez-Laing could be their promotion wildcardCredit: Rex Features

The star’s strike was compared to Kenny Dalglish by his boss Neil WarnockCredit: Getty

Warnock handed his former Cardiff a career lifeline with a short-term contract last month after he had been axed by the Bluebirds and banned for three months by the FA after testing positive for cocaine.
The Boro boss has been easing the attacker in slowly, but after he confidently finished off a late counter-attack with a ‘Kenny Dalglish-eque chip’, he is adamant Mendez-Laing can play a huge role in their play-off hunt.
 Warnock said: “He can win games. That’s what you need at this level. 
“We haven’t had enough goals this season and that’s why we are where we are really.

“I thought it was a team performance to create the goal and Mendez can score at any level.
“I can show you his two goals at Old Trafford on the final day of the Premier League and he terrorised the full-back that day.
“He has plenty of potential but he’s been out a while. I don’t want him to try too hard.
“He’s just got to do what he’s doing, things like now, training after the game and get some mileage in and hopefully he’ll get some starts in before the end of the season.”

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He continued: “When you’ve been through what he’s been through it’s a relief, and I’m sure he wanted to show the lads what he can do.
“It’s no good me saying where he’ll fit in, it’s on the pitch where you show the lads.
“It was nice though, and you’re not going to see a better finish than that. It reminded me of a Kenny Dalglish finish!”
When quizzed about keeping Mendez-Laing next season, Warnock said: “There’s a long way to go yet, he knows that. I’ve only just sorted myself out!
“He knows he doesn’t have to prove anything to me. I know what he can do.”
A fourth defeat in five leaves Stoke facing up to another year of Championship football.
Boss Michael O’Neill said: “We are in a more comfortable position than we were last year but we want to be a team that can challenge at the top end of this league and at the moment we are not that.”
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TODD CANTWELL made life just gr-eight for Norwich as they roared 10 points clear at the top.
The midfielder’s magical 77th-minute finish – his fifth goal of the season – capped a superb comeback by the leaders to confirm an eighth straight league win.

Cantwell, 23, scored the winner at HillsboroughCredit: Getty Images – Getty

Pukki, 30, made it 1-1 just after the hourCredit: Getty Images – Getty

Teemu Pukki’s 21st of the campaign in the 61st minute was a fine leveller after the high-flying Canaries were stunned by former player Jordan Rhodes as second-bottom Wednesday battled to avoid a seventh straight defeat.
Striker Rhodes scored nine goals during a season-long loan with Daniel Farke’s side as they went up as champions in 2019.
This time he was foe, not friend as the 31-year-old, who also started his career at Norwich’s arch-rivals Ipswich, opened the scoring in the seventh minute.
The Scotland international pounced after Josh Windass had been pulled back by Ben Gibson on the edge of the box.

Barry Bannan’s free kick struck the wall and when Joey Pelupessy’s follow-up fell kindly into Rhodes’ path, he calmly steered it past Tim Krul for his fourth goal of the campaign.
Wednesday were a shadow of the side that had struggled at the bottom end.
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Former Norwich loanee Rhodes, 31, gave Wednesday the leadCredit: Getty Images – Getty
They unsettled the visitors with their aggression and slick attacking build-up as Adam Reach and Kadeem Harris tested Krul with decent efforts.
Lukas Rupp saw a drive pushed away by Keiren Westwood at the other end while Pukki was thwarted by a Tom Lees block.
But Farke had his men fired up for the second half and they levelled with a Skipp and a thump.
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Spurs loanee Oliver Skipp drove forward to tee up Pukki in space inside the box and he smashed into the top corner past Westwood.
It was his 50th goal in 75 Championship games and number 51 almost followed when he lashed another effort wide.
But Cantwell’s classy left-foot curler did beat Westwood to give Norwich a first league double over the hosts since the 2001-02 season – and keep them on course for a Premier League return.

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MIDDLESBROUGH are clinging on to their play-off dream but surely ended Stoke’s after thrashing them 3-0.
Grant Hall and Paddy McNair struck in the first half before Nathaniel Mendez-Laing pounced late on to leave Boro eight points off the top six.

Nathaniel Mendez-Laing celebrates after sealing Boro’s 3-0 win over StokeCredit: Rex Features

But the defeat left out-of-form Stoke stuck in mid table obscurity and facing another season in the Championship.
After a fourth defeat in five, boss Michael O’Neill said: “I’m extremely disappointed with the result.
“For all the play we had we just did not do enough with it or have enough cutting edge.
“We are trying to rebuild the club and it will take time. We have to continue to try and make the club and team better and bring better players to the club.”

Stoke almost scored after 20 seconds when Jacob Brown’s cross-come-shot cannoned back off the post.
They continued to dominate with Tommy Smith coming close only to be caught out against the run of play by a set-piece.
Marc Bola’s corner was flicked on by Chuba Akpom for Hall to slot home at the back.
Stoke’s Nick Powell was fortunate to just receive yellow after diving in on Yannick Bolasie, although the Boro man recovered to provide his team’s second after a tactical reshuffle.

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McNair had just been pushed into midfield from defence, and that led to him receiving the ball out on the left and skipping past two before opening his body to slot past Angus Gunn.
McNair almost got his second when Gunn came racing out to clear straight to him but his long-range chip was wide of the empty target.
Boro stopper Marcus Bettinelli made a brilliant save to deny Steven Fletcher on the volley before Mendez-Laing came off the bench to finish a counter-attack to seal it.
Neil Warnock said: “We had to win today. I said to the players we have to get wins on the board.
“We’ve just got to go and try and win every game now. We are quite capable of doing it.”
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