Jack Butland reacts as Liam Millar drops Birmingham City message | OneFootball

The Canadian winger impressed on his debut in the Midlands derby against Wolves

Birmingham City debutant Liam Millar has received plenty of plaudits for his role in the club's 2-2 draw with local rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park on Sunday lunchtime.

It was the first time Blues and Wolves had faced off in any competition since April 2018, but nothing could separate Chris Davies or Cesar Peixoto's sides on this particular occasion.

Having endured mixed results in midweek, there was plenty of anticipation heading into this clash as the West Midlands outfits had lost just one of their eight combined Championship matches beforehand.

Certainly from a defensive perspective, both managers will feel there is more to improve on as the campaign progresses despite a plethora of exciting attackers being on show.

One of those, of course, was Millar, who was the subject of a high-profile Deadline Day loan move from Premier League newcomers, Hull City, after Birmingham were able to fend off strong competition for the 26-year-old.

One of the main talking points post-match was his impact on the left flank for Davies' side, and plenty of his new colleagues, as well as those at his parent club with connections to Blues, have been reacting to his first social media message since completing the temporary switch.

Ex-Birmingham City star Jack Butland reacts to Liam Millar's social media message

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Millar has endured a mixed career period of late, having suffered an ACL injury shortly after signing for Hull two years ago, before featuring 38 times last season upon his return and even netting the winner against Coventry City in the Premier League on August 29th after representing Canada at the FIFA World Cup.

Having watched Birmingham's 1-1 draw with Southampton on Tuesday night from the stands, the former Liverpool ace made his first start against Wolves, and was an impressive figure before being substituted after 70 minutes in place of Demarai Gray.

Taking to Instagram post-match, which also saw Jackson Tchatchoua score a comical own goal after strong pressing from the new signing, Millar said: "Really happy to make my debut for this great club!

He added: "Thank you so much for ur warm welcome! Atmosphere was unreal!

"Onto the next! KRO!"

Amongst those in the replies was former Birmingham goalkeeper and academy graduate, Jack Butland, who signed for Hull in the summer from Rangers, but is currently sidelined with an arm injury.

The 33-year-old responded with two celebratory emojis in response to Millar's performance for his old side, who he left for Stoke City over a decade ago.

Liam Millar made a strong first impression in Birmingham City colours

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Although much of the post-match attention went to Tom Wagner, who attended his first game in person as Birmingham owner for eight months after suffering a stroke, Millar's performance was still a hot topic of discussion, even if it was solid, if not spectacular.

With the left wing position certainly providing selection headaches for Davies across the past two years for various reasons, the Hull loanee brought an element of composure, as well as intensity in his running, and will now be hoping to add plenty of end product as the campaign progresses.

Ironically, Davies revealed earlier in the week that Millar had been on his radar for the past two seasons, which also includes Blues' record-breaking campaign in League One.

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Just two weeks ago, Davies was the subject of intense pressure yet again after a 6-1 defeat to Brentford in the EFL Cup, but Birmingham have certainly shown encouraging signs since then.

Victory at Wrexham followed by home draws against Southampton and Wolves shows there is the nucleus of a competitive team, but they must turn draws into wins sooner rather than later after a total of four from their first five matches.

However, they, alongside league-leading Swansea City, are the only unbeaten sides left in the division, although an intriguing encounter at Norwich City on Wednesday night will put that record to the test.