Birmingham City: Marvin Ducksch sends message to Demarai Gray after Norwich City masterclass | OneFootball

Birmingham striker Marvin Ducksch had special thanks for the player who set up his first goal for his new club against Norwich City on Saturday.

Birmingham City striker Marvin Ducksch had a message of thanks to give his fellow forward Demarai Gray following their team's win against Norwich City.

Following a slightly patchy start to the 2025-26 season, Blues continued their excellent recent home form on Saturday afternoon with a 4-1 routing of Norwich City at St Andrew's in the new Norwich manager Phillipe Clement's first game in charge of his new club.

It was a win which lifted Chris Davies' team to 10th place in the Championship, and it continued their prolific goalscoring prowess on home turf, having scored four times in each of their last three contests at St. Andrew's.

Two goals each from Marvin Ducksch and Jay Stansfield saw City run out comfortable winners, and after the match on Instagram, ex-Germany international Ducksch had a special message of thanks to give another Blues player who also made a full contribution to a comprehensive win.

Marvin Ducksch shows his appreciation to Birmingham City team-mate Demarai Gray

Late on Saturday evening, Demarai Gray posted a picture of himself at St. Andrew's to his Instagram account which attracted well over 7,000 likes, but one of the replies from one of his team-mates particularly caught the eye.

Underneath the picture, fellow Blues forward Marvin Ducksch replied with a heart-warming message for his team-mate, saying "Loveeee my brother" and "Thank you", accompanied by some love hearts.

This will have been a reference to Gray's performance in the Norwich match, in which the Jamaica international winger provided two assists, including one for Ducksch's third-minute opening goal, which also happens to have been his first in the league for his new club.

Gray has been in fine form in recent weeks for City, scoring twice and assisting a further two goals to become a key asset in Chris Davies' promotion-chasing side.

Demarai Gray didn't get on the scoresheet against Norwich City, but his contribution was hugely significant

It's not surprising that Marvin Ducksch should have shown his appreciation for Demarai Gray following Birmingham's comprehensive win against Norwich City on Saturday.

Gray may not have got onto the scoresheet himself, but he provided an assist each to both Ducksch and Jay Stansfield as the Blues ran up an easy 4-1 win against the struggling Canaries.

It only took three minutes at St. Andrew's on Saturday afternoon for Gray and Ducksch to make their impact, with Gray finding space on the left and crossing for Ducksch to score from close range, his first goal for the club following his signing from Werder Bremen in August.

Both players had further contributions to make on a rainy afternoon in the West Midlands. With Jay Stansfield having doubled Birmingham's lead after 21 minutes and Mathias Kvistgaarden having pulled a goal back for the Canaries, Ducksch scored his second goal for his new club a minute from half-time, while Gray was on hand to provide his second assist of the afternoon for Stansfield to make the points safe for Birmingham nine minutes into the second half.

This was the eighth appearance of the season for Ducksch and his fifth start, and for a striker to go that long without scoring a goal could start to get the player nervous.

Ducksch had been injured when he first signed for the Blues, and for Gray to set up an opportunity that was almost impossible for the big German to miss, and to do so within three minutes of the start of the game, may do wonders for the striker's confidence - it's small wonder he was happy to express his gratitude towards his team-mate.