'On the rise?' Birmingham City chief causes Aston Villa stir amid Barcelona news | OneFootball

Blues will welcome the Catalan giants to B9 in a high-profile encounter

Birmingham City have certainly received plenty of attention in recent times, largely due to the investment provided at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park by their American investors.

Next month will mark three years since Tom Wagner completed his initial takeover of the West Midlands outfit, bringing an end to Blues' extremely alarming tenure under the ownership of Birmingham Sports Holdings Limited.

That said, the last 36 months have still been an emotional rollercoaster for Blues supporters, with the club relegated from the Championship to League One at the end of Knighthead's first campaign in the boardroom.

Wagner, 56, then responded by appointing Chris Davies as manager, and has since heavily backed the 41-year-old significantly in terms of transfer budgets and overall support, with the Blues boss certainly receiving a fair portion of criticism in recent months.

Most of that has come down to the fact that, after romping to the League One title in record-breaking fashion over the course of 2024/25, Birmingham were not able to fully justify two further high-profile squad reshuffles after their promotion, which included a 14-player recruitment drive last summer.

Some of those who were recruited then have either already departed, or continue to generate exit talk, whilst Blues went on to finish 10th, nine places outside the play-offs.

As such, many in B9 are of an expectant mood heading into the new season, although excitement is certainly in the air before the EFL campaign gets underway, following confirmation that the Second City outfit will welcome FC Barcelona to St. Andrew's on Friday, July 31st.

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Confirmation of the fixture comes after a period of speculation, with Hansi Flick's La Liga winners set for a two-week training camp at St George's Park in Burton, which begins four days prior to the clash with Davies' side.

However, the strength of the squad at the German's disposal will depend on the fortunes of Spain in the FIFA World Cup 2026, with the likes of Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres featuring on the global stage.

Regardless, it is still a huge deal for Blues to be hosting the friendly, which will also be the sixth time the two sides have met, and it has already generated a reaction from Advisory Board Chairman, Tom Brady.

Meanwhile, as part of the club's official confirmation and ticket pricing for the fixture, CEO, Jeremy Dale, has said: "We are thrilled to welcome FC Barcelona to St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park for what promises to be a memorable occasion for our players, supporters and the city of Birmingham.

"This fixture reflects the ambition of Birmingham City and the progress being made across the Club. The footballing world is paying attention to what is happening at Birmingham City," he added.

“Barcelona are a powerhouse of world football and have chosen to kick-off their pre-season campaign with us. People are seeing that there is an exciting story unfolding here. Hosting one of the most iconic teams in the world, with such a rich history and global following, is a fantastic opportunity as we build towards the new season."

Rather unsurprisingly, not all are on board with what is happening at St. Andrew's, particularly those of an Aston Villa persuasion.

The Villans, of course, have just come off one of their greatest-ever seasons under the management of Unai Emery, as they finished fourth in the Premier League and defeated SC Freiburg in last month's UEFA Europa League final, winning continental silverware for the first time since 1983 - which ironically came against Barcelona in the UEFA Super Cup over two legs.

As a result, many Villa fans have attempted to let Blues know that they could also be playing the Spanish giants, just on a much more 'prestigious' stage.

Some Blues fans, though, have been quick to remind their rival fans that they supposedly are not interested in the goings-on at St. Andrew's.

Another Bluenose is, however, failing to see how the club's 'on the rise' slogan is aligning with recent news of potential exits for Demarai Gray, Marvin Ducksch and the highly-rated Aurelien Guernier.

While Blues have also been heavy on social media interactions under Knighthead, another supporter wasn't exactly impressed.

Other Villa fans were also quick to remind those from across the city of their recent success, as they fail to understand why such hype has been generated over a pre-season friendly, regardless of Barcelona's overall stature.

Meanwhile, one Blues fan has requested that the club look to target pre-season friendlies against teams who will offer similar traits to that of Championship sides, such as Argentinian giants, Boca Juniors.

It perhaps is no real surprise that such an occasion has generated plenty of mixed reactions, as this is often par for the course between supporters of Blues, Villa and their fellow local rivals, such as Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion.

Birmingham, of course, will be hoping this is a taste of the future as they prepare to move into the 62,000-seater Powerhouse stadium in five years time, which, in itself, has also caused plenty of debate and similar discourse from fans of their rivals.