Sheffield United won't be regretting one Ruben Selles transfer decision - Birmingham City might | OneFootball

Jack Robinson has had a nightmare start at Birmingham City.

Jack Robinson is having a hard time at Birmingham City.

The experienced defender arrived from Sheffield United over the summer, and his start in the West Midlands has been somewhat of a rollercoaster.

After putting in a Man of the Match performance on his debut against Swansea City, the 32-year-old has since made three further appearances in the second tier, having missed four matches through suspension already this season.

While ex-club Sheffield United do currently sit in the bottom three, they are unlikely to regret the decision made to let the defender move on bother them too much, but the Blues, meanwhile, could be full of regret.

Jack Robinson's Birmingham City move has not gone as planned

After being named captain of Sheffield United at the start of the 2024/25 season, Robinson appeared 34 times for the Blades as they pushed for a Premier League return, before featuring a further three times in the play-offs, where they lost out to Sunderland at Wembley.

Following the defeat in May, the Blades looked to enter a new era under the guidance of Ruben Selles, with Chris Wilder relieved of his duties over the summer.

Following four losses on the bounce, Robinson made his move to Birmingham at the end of the transfer window, with the defender putting pen to paper on a two-year deal. However, it has not gone to plan.

Birmingham entered the season with promotion ambitions, having stormed League One and ambitiously recruited the likes of Tommy Doyle, Marvin Ducksch and Kyogo. However, Chris Davies' side have struggled to really settle back down in the second tier.

Robinson made his debut under Davies in a 1-0 win against Swansea at St Andrew's, winning Man of the Match in the process.

However, in the following clash against Coventry City, Robinson would be red-carded after a second bookable offence, as the Blues went on to lose 3-0 against the pace-setters.

He would return for the 1-1 draw against Wrexham before the international break. But, just after the pause, he would be sent off again - this time receiving a quickfire double booking in a 3-2 loss against Hull City at St Andrew's, as he disputed a decision aggressively.

He would make the bench in Birmingham's most recent matches against Millwall and Middlesbrough, though he would not feature.

Speaking to Birmingham Live, Davies has since spoken about the defender's recent fortunes: "Jack is one of those where if you see him around day-to-day, he's got these leadership skills and he's got the respect of people for what he's achieved in the game and the longevity of his career and who he is.

"As he's admitted himself, there are unfortunate mistakes that have been made, and he's completely owned those. I'm sure he's keen to get back on the pitch and put them to bed."

Birmingham welcome Norwich City to St Andrew's following the current international break, before making the short trip to West Brom. Robinson will hope that the break brings an end to his current woes and that the backing he is receiving from his manager continues.

Sheffield United won't regret the decision to let Jack Robinson leave

Only arch-rivals Sheffield Wednesday (29) have conceded more goals than the Blades' 26 thus far. However, despite this, it is hard to point in the direction of anything other than Sheffield United having little to no regret regarding Robinson's departure - Ben Mee and Japhet Tanganga are serious upgrades on Robinson in that area of the pitch.

Context must also be applied, with the fact that 12 of the 26 were conceded in the opening five matches, before the sacking of Selles following a devastating 5-0 defeat at Ipswich. Since Wilder's shock return, the slight defensive improvement has been there, with the Blades conceding 14 in their last 10 Championship matches.

At 32, the argument is there to be made that Robinson's best years are in the past. And while the new era did not take the right direction under Selles, the departures of Robinson and age-mate Kieffer Moore do signal a step towards a younger squad at Bramall Lane; albeit given the latter's red-hot form at Wrexham, there will be some regret with that transfer.

Robinson's performances for Birmingham have not exactly proven Selles wrong for the decision over the summer, either. And despite the Spaniard no longer being in charge, Sheffield United as a club are unlikely to lose any sleep over the matter.