Tom Wagner can hit Birmingham City jackpot with ex-Man Utd figure | OneFootball

Dan Ashworth has been heavily linked with a key vacancy in the Blues' hierarchy

Birmingham City have made several intriguing strides both on and off the pitch under the ownership of Knighthead Capital Management, which includes having to take steps back in order to move forward.

It has now been 15 years since Blues were last seen in the Premier League, and aside from their one finish inside the Championship's play-off places in 2011/12, when a semi-final defeat was suffered against Blackpool, they have shown no real signs of ending such a lengthy hiatus.

For the majority of said timeframe, very little investment was plugged into the club's coffers, and when it appeared to have been during the first pre-season of Birmingham Sports Holdings' tenure as owners, it proved to be extremely unsuccessful, leading to eventual points deductions in 2018/19 under Garry Monk.

Unsurprisingly, excitement levels skyrocketed three summers ago when Tom Wagner finalised his initial takeover of the club from BSHL, although a similar trend in terms of success in the transfer market would continue, alongside a handful of rash decisions which the American and his fellow members of the hierarchy have since held their hands up over.

Following the chaotic relegation season of 2023/24, which included six permanent or temporary figures in the dugout, two key decisions were made throughout the 2024/25 League One title-winning season, with the first of those being Chris Davies' appointment, and later the action of appointing Craig Gardner as director of football in February 2025.

However, at various periods of the club's first season back at Championship level, the duo have come under scrutiny as a 10th-placed finish with recorded.

And, with Wagner and Co. needing to now source an immediate replacement for the 39-year-old following his exit, there is a chance that a real statement could be made.

Dan Ashworth has been namedropped as a potential replacement for Craig Gardner as Birmingham City's director of football

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Despite being promoted to director of football 16 months ago, it has been well-documented that Gardner had performed a key role in the completion of several transfers during his post-playing days at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park, with not all proving to be successes despite the club's high-profile spends.

For some, mainly on the outside, the jury is still out on club-record signing, Jay Stansfield, who scored 10 goals in 44 Championship games last season amid an indifferent run of form in 2026 to-date, whilst the obvious misfire comes in the form of Kyogo Furuhashi, who has scored just three goals in all competitions following a high-profile move from Stade Rennais.

After previous talk emerged that Gardner could depart in the summer, it was confirmed by Blues in a statement that the former midfielder made his intentions of stepping away clear to the higher-ups well in advance, which suggests that time has been of the essence to draw up a shortlist of potential replacements.

With the likes of NFL icon, Tom Brady, currently advisory board chairman, his influence behind-the-scenes has been well-documented on the Blues-themed Amazon Prime docuseries, and it showcases a desire that the culture created at St. Andrew's must be the 'best of the best'.

Therefore, it may come as little surprise to some that the FA's chief football officer, Dan Ashworth, has reportedly made the top of said shortlist alongside Kristjaan Speakman, most recently of Sunderland, and Blues' academy director, Mike Rigg.

It remains to be seen if either of the trio will be handed the role in the coming days and weeks, but Football Insider have initially claimed they are set for respective interviews with Knighthead.

Dan Ashworth appointment could transform Birmingham City

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After initially starting his current career in roles at Peterborough United and Cambridge United, Ashworth rose to prominence through an eight-year spell as West Bromwich Albion's sporting and technical director, before first becoming a part of the FA's setup in 2012.

Despite the Three Lions' shortcomings under Roy Hodgson, Ashworth was largely responsible for the appointment of Gareth Southgate, which led to a semi-final finish at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, before he took up the role of technical director at Brighton and Hove Albion.

During his four years with the Seagulls, Ashworth's stock continued to rise as the Sussex club developed a strong reputation for a 'moneyball' approach in the transfer market, as well as large progress in the Premier League.

The 55-year-old, who has previously been described as having "a reputation as being the best in the business as far as English football is concerned," then aided Newcastle United's remarkable initial transformation from relegation battlers to UEFA Champions League contenders under Eddie Howe, and his reputation very much remains in high regard despite a tumultuous five-month period at Manchester United.

Ashworth's current role within the FA set up is the 'first of its kind', showcasing a further ability to adapt to differing scenarios, and that would very much be the case if he were to return to the West Midlands ahead of the new season.

With an expanded play-off format, Birmingham are already among the favourites to finish in the top eight with continued backing, and it would tick a box in the section of short-term aims if they were to achieve promotion in the lead-up to the building and opening of the 62,000-seater Powerhouse stadium, as multiple seasons as a top-flight side with chiefs such as Ashworth at the helm would only help grow the club's stature on many fronts.