Chris Davies left fuming at Birmingham City flashpoint in loss to Ipswich Town | OneFootball

Birmingham City boss Chris Davies was not happy that his team were wrongly denied an equaliser in their defeat at Ipswich Town.

Birmingham City’s poor form continued as they were beaten 2-1 by Ipswich Town at Portman Road on Easter Monday.

Blues had taken the lead through a smart Carlos Vicente finish, but goals from Ben Johnson and Kasey McAteer had put the hosts ahead by half-time, and that’s ultimately how the game would finish.

However, it doesn’t tell the whole story, as Chris Davies’ side were much-improved after the break, and they were wrongly denied an equaliser after Dara O’Shea had deflected an Ibrahim Osman cross into his own net.

Chris Davies slams officials after controversial moment in Ipswich’s win over Birmingham

The on-loan Brighton man was an influential figure after his introduction, and he appeared to have helped Blues get back on level terms when his cross hit the Tractor Boys’ centre-back and went in.

Yet, the assistant had judged the ball was out of play, despite replays showing that it clearly hadn’t fully crossed the line. So, the goal was ruled out, and even though Blues continued to push for a second, they were defeated.

As you would expect, Davies wasn’t happy with the decision to rule out the goal in the second half, as he criticised the officials when speaking to Birmingham Live.

“I’ve never been as frustrated in my time in football from a decision from a linesman 60 yards away that has guessed on a ball going out. Every player around the ball and their reactions suggested that ball was in play, yet we had an official that decided to guess wrongly that the ball was out of play.

“I asked him after the game, ‘Why did you make that decision?’ And he said, ‘I can assure you the ball was out of play, I wouldn’t have made it if not.’ He was wrong and when he sees the video he’ll realise that it was wrong.

“It’s cost us and these are decisive moments, not just for us but for this league. There’s a big prize at the top of this league and today it cost us what we thoroughly deserved.”

Chris Davies can take encouragement from Birmingham City performance

There’s not much you can add to Davies’ comments here about the goal. The replays say it all, as the ball was clearly in play, and Birmingham were wrongly denied the equaliser, so you can understand why the boss feels aggrieved.

As Davies points out, it could have major implications in the promotion race, and you can be sure the likes of Millwall and Middlesbrough are unhappy as well.

It’s also not what Davies needed at a time when he is under serious scrutiny, but the reality is that he can take plenty of positives from the overall display.

Ipswich are undoubtedly one of the best teams in the Championship, and they’re formidable on their own patch, so the way Birmingham performed was encouraging, especially in the second half when they were the dominant side.

Now, Davies must use that as the benchmark for the final five games of the campaign, as even if Blues don’t have much to play for, he may need some big performances from the team to convince the hierarchy that he deserves to lead the team next season, where there will be an expectation for Birmingham to be in the mix for promotion.