Birmingham City were handed a sobering reality check as their heaviest home defeat in 12 years saw them humbled and dumped out of the Carabao Cup. Brentford plundered three goals in the first half, from Callum Wilson, Aaron Hickey and Nathan Collins, and three more in the second as Mikkel Damsgaard, Igor Thiago and Collins again saw the Bees render Blues virtually defenceless. There were apologies all-round from manager Chris Davies and captain Christoph Klarer after a 6-1 thrashing in which Blues were third in a two-horse race.
Reality dose for Knighthead's Premier League ambitions
Ever since they saved the club, Knighthead have talked about reaching the Premier League. After the correction that was an immediate return from League One, Blues are back in the Championship and while last summer's narrative has been publicly toned down in the last few months, behind the scenes the goal remains the same. They will look at this ignominious defeat and must realise how far the club has to go. They also need to treat this reality check as confirmation the team has even further to travel.
Brentford were levels above, several levels in fact. Years and years of excellent recruitment and succession planning enabled them to put out a side featuring eight changes to the one that beat Tottenham and not miss a beat. Keith Andrews' players were faster, stronger, more technically able and quite simply better footballers. They played to an established pattern and were superior in every single facet. That was before they introduced Brazil's centre-forward Igor Thiago, club record signing Mamadou Sangare and the outstanding Kevin Schade.
The owners can dream about the top flight but the gulf between the two squads was as wide as the ocean between St Andrew's and their New York base.
Plans B, C and D considered
All of which begs the question, what could or should Davies have done differently? He could have picked a first-choice XI. You'd have to think Jay Stansfield would have impacted the game more than the ghost that was Kanya Fujimoto. You'd hope James Beadle would have done better than Ryan Allsop. Phil Neumann is in more of a groove than Dael Fry. But then you're asking the same players to do a job in an important Championship match three days later. Rotation was the only way to go.
Davies spoke about Brentford's threat before the game, noting they score goals in every way possible, set-pieces, counter-attack and open play. He could have protected more against the set-piece threat by naming three centre-backs, something he did when Neumann came on with 15 minutes to go. Blues were 5-1 down at the time and the horse hadn't so much as bolted as disappeared over the hill, settled down and had a foal of its own. Even then Nathan Collins still scored with a header.
He could have asked his team, in whatever formation, to settle into a low block and sit in. Afterwards he spoke about the relative success Blues had enjoyed unsettling Newcastle and Leeds by pressing them in previous cup ties. Hindsight tells us pressing Brentford, with Jhon Solis particularly high up out of possession, this was the wrong way to go. But Captain Hindsight is never wrong.
Of all three options, different personnel, formation or tactics, it feels like a 5-4-1, with Neumann, Klarer and Dael Fry manning the aerial defences might have shored things up at the back. But Blues would have been without a goal threat and it would have been perceived as a hugely negative tactic in a free-hit of a home-match.
Blues boos and Davies under pressure
As a result Davies was inevitably the focal point of last night's criticism. He came into his press conference and metaphorically held up his hands – having done literally that in front of the Tilton as it emptied in the minutes after the game. The apology was his only option and it didn't need to be teased out. He acknowledged the boos and effectively admitted the reaction might have been worse, praising supporters for sticking by the players.
While I've always found it more sensible to use the temperature in the stadium rather than on social media as a barometer, it's undeniable Davies' stock took a hit last night. If the fans desert him en masse it's difficult to see any outcome other than Knighthead's hand being forced. Wrexham on Friday night is huge in that respect.
Davies absolutely has to somehow coax a performance from his side in a fixture that for some will be must win but for even his most ardent backer is must-not-lose. Deploying the likes of Paik Seung-ho and Jay Stansfield in positions to which they are ill-suited again at the Racecourse Ground could be inviting trouble.
Helpfully Blues will be facing Championship rather than elite opposition, helpfully he'll be free to pick a full rather than a rotated team. Unhelpfully they will be facing a Wrexham side that is well-rested. There will also be worries about shellshock and how much psychological damage Brentford have inflicted. It feels like a watershed fixture.
Finally, small positives
This is probably the definition of straw-clutching or barrel-scraping but let's try to unearth even the smallest positives. Demarai Gray looked like the only Blues player who knew what was going on and how to affect any change. Kristoffer Lund's set-piece delivery was decent. Jhon Solis showed appetite for the fight, as did Stansfield. That's it.
