Ex-Man Utd, Man City chiefs in frame for Birmingham City role | OneFootball

Blues are on the hunt for a new director of football following Craig Gardner's exit

Birmingham City's preparations for the upcoming 2026/27 Championship season are set to ramp up in the coming days and weeks, as the West Midlands outfit look to reaffirm their well-documented ambitions both on and off the pitch.

Under the ownership of Knighthead Capital Management, who acquired Blues three summers ago - bringing a lengthy period of controversial and tumultuous reigns of power for various Far East consortiums to an end - the club have made it firmly clear that they are no longer content with making up the numbers in the Championship and beyond.

That comes in spite of the fact they were relegated at the end of Tom Wagner's first season as chairman two years ago, with the American soon making the swift decision to appoint Chris Davies on a long-term contract in his first-ever managerial post.

Davies' tenure at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park will shortly hit the two-year anniversary milestone, whilst the 41-year-old has certainly split opinion in the 24 months which have passed since he was handed the vacancy.

Indeed, Birmingham - following a high-profile transfer spend - were able to romp to the League One title whilst accumulating the EFL's all-time record points total of 111 in the process, and they were expected to carry such momentum into their first season back in the second tier.

Yet, whilst overseeing two further heavy squad reshuffles, Davies had been the subject of exit talk, as well as director of football, Craig Gardner.

However, the latter of said duo has now left his role within the B9 hierarchy, and talk has already become rife as to who will fill such a void ahead of the 2026/27 campaign.

Dan Ashworth and Kristjaan Speakman among potential replacements for Craig Gardner as Birmingham City's director of football

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After reports of an expected departure for Gardner first broke on Friday, it was confirmed by Blues that the 39-year-old had informed the club of his decision many weeks ago, as well as receiving high praise for his role in Knighthead's takeover back in July 2023.

With pre-season for the new campaign not far away at all, Football Insider have claimed that chiefs at St. Andrew's have already drawn up a shortlist of potential candidates to take up Gardner's previous role, and that three are currently at the top.

The publication claim that Dan Ashworth - who is currently the Football Association's chief football officer - as well as Kristjaan Speakman, previously of Sunderland and a former academy director with Blues, and current academy director, Mike Rigg, make up said trio.

All three are reportedly in line for interviews with the club in the upcoming period, as Knighthead look to make a swift appointment as the summer transfer window is set to open on Monday, June 15th.

Rigg is currently helping oversee the development of Blues' youngsters after previously holding the role of technical director at clubs such as Burnley, Queens Park Rangers and Manchester City.

Ashworth, meanwhile, is highly respected within the game, and his current role with the FA is the very first of its kind after previously working within the hierarchies of Manchester United, Newcastle United, Brighton and Hove Albion and local rivals, West Bromwich Albion.

Birmingham City have the chance to make another statement with pending director of football appointment

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Such appointments, of course, do not guarantee immediate success on the pitch, but the potential appointment of Ashworth, in particular, would send out another statement regarding Blues' short and long-term ambitions, which are to return to the Premier League and make further progress in the top-flight, along with the transition of moving into the 62,000-seater Powerhouse stadium.

Last term, Davies' side weren't in the promotion conversation for the majority of the season despite continued investment, albeit a 10th-place finish was still the club's highest in a decade.

However, many are predicting Birmingham to flourish in the transfer market with the implementation of the EFL's new Squad Cost Rules, which allows clubs to spend up to a maximum of 85% of income generated, with the club having several high-profile commercial deals.

This, along with a change to the play-off format, could mean the Second City outfit fancy their chances of ending a lengthy exile from the top-flight in 11 months' time.