Dael Fry made his Birmingham City debut in Wednesday night's 3-0 pre-season friendly victory against Solihull Moors at The ARMCO Arena. The centre-back joined Blues on a free transfer from Middlesbrough at the beginning of July and is now into his second week of pre-season training.
Due to being slightly behind in his preparation for the new campaign, Fry did not feature in Blues' win over Huddersfield Town in Portugal last week. That made the much shorter trip to Solihull the stage for his first outing in Royal Blue.
Where did Fry play?
Unsurprisingly, Fry played at centre-back, but there has been much discussion about which side he would be deployed on for Blues. Fry has played most of his 306 career appearances on the left side of central defence.
“I’m not too sure if I’m going to play on the left or the right but I’m happy to do either,” Fry told BirminghamLive last week. “I’ve played nearly 300 games in the Championship and the majority of them have been on the left so I am comfortable there.”
Against Solihull, Fry was fielded next to left-footed Jack Robinson for the second half, so it was natural for him to operate on the right side of the central defensive pairing.
How did Fry perform?
Fry is not noted for his ball-playing abilities but rather his defensive qualities. However, his first involvement in Royal Blue was an accurate cross-field pass to left-winger Salif Bamba, which eventually resulted in a chance for Demarai Gray to flash an effort wide.
Fry often acted as the spare man when Blues were building from the back, and they worked the ball to him on occasions to start attacks down the right. He found Carlos Vicente in space with a couple of fizzed passes to get Blues flowing forward.
Defensively, Fry was not tested too much, but there was a coming together with ex-Blues youngster Ben Wodskou that showcased the 6ft 4in defender's physical prowess. The former Middlesbrough captain was one of the louder voices on the pitch, alongside the experienced Robinson, in the second half.
What did Chris Davies say?
Analysing Fry's debut to BirminghamLive after the match, head coach Chris Davies said: “I think Dael looked assured. He was nice, neat and tidy, won his headers, he’s a big size, big and strong, won his duels, kept his passing simple, and hit a big diagonal early in the second half. It was a good 45 minutes for him.”
The 45-minute runout will serve as a valuable stepping stone for Fry as he builds fitness ahead of the new Championship season. With his experience of nearly 300 Championship appearances, Fry is expected to be a key figure in Birmingham's defence this campaign.
