Chris Davies Backs Luis Vazquez After Derby Miss

Chris Davies insists his belief in Luis Vazquez has not wavered for a second – despite the miss that Birmingham City fans, and half the internet, are still replaying.

The Argentine striker’s late chance at Derby County, blazed over from close range in the 2-1 win, was instantly clipped, shared and mocked, thrown into the same conversation as some of football’s most infamous sitters, from Roger Davies to Ronny Rosenthal. It became a meme before the final whistle had even faded.

Davies is having none of it.

‘A freak’ miss – and a firm backing

Ahead of Middlesbrough’s visit to St Andrew’s on Saturday, the Blues head coach brushed off the incident in blunt terms.

“He could do that 100 times and score 100 goals,” he told BBC Radio WM, calling the miss “a freak”. No long inquest. No public dressing-down. Just a line drawn.

“It can only make him stronger,” Davies said. “He’s a tough cookie. He’s shown no signs of fragility.”

The manager went straight to his striker at full-time at Pride Park, conscious of the noise that would follow such a glaring miss.

“I made a point to talk to him straight after the game last Saturday,” Davies revealed. The response from the dressing room came a few days later. “When he scored a good goal in training this week, he got a big cheer from the lads.”

Vazquez has yet to start a league game for Blues, used so far as an impact substitute. That Derby chance would have been his first Championship goal and a simple way to silence the jokes. It went the other way. The wait goes on.

Davies understands exactly what that first goal will mean.

“He’s so desperate to score,” he said. “And we so want him to score. As soon as that first one goes in, it will all be forgotten about.”

Strong on the road, questions at home

While the Vazquez miss grabbed the headlines, the bigger story around Birmingham is their split personality: rugged, efficient travellers; frustrated hosts.

Seven points from a possible 12 away – at Sheffield United, Wrexham, Norwich City and Derby County – represents a solid return, Norwich the only defeat. On the road, they’ve dug in, countered well, and looked like a team that enjoys the scrap.

Back at St Andrew’s, the pattern has been different. Three home games, three draws: 2-2 with Bristol City, 1-1 against Southampton, 2-2 versus Wolves. Leads have slipped, control has ebbed away, wins have refused to land.

Now Middlesbrough arrive, and with them another chance to crack the home riddle.

Davies, though, is not in crisis mode. Far from it. He has been reminded repeatedly that Birmingham’s opening run of fixtures is among the toughest in the division, and he sees enough in the performances to believe the foundation is sound.

“We’ve got the same amount of points as we did this time last season, but we’re a better team,” he said.

A harder edge and a clearer identity

For Davies, the difference lies in both ends of the pitch.

“We’re more of an attacking threat, but we also look a bit more solid and more of a team,” he said. There is no attempt to pretend everything is perfect. “There’s still room for improvement in a few areas, but we can’t say we’re not pleased with the start we’ve made, given the challenge we had.”

One theme keeps coming back when Davies talks about his side: defending, and not in a grudging, backs-to-the-wall sense.

“Our love of defending is clear to see. It’s as good as scoring a goal,” he said. That line tells you as much about his priorities as any chalkboard or data sheet. Shape matters, but attitude matters more.

“That takes you a long way. So much gets talked about systems but you can’t get away from commitment.”

Commitment to the press. Commitment in the duels. Commitment, too, to a striker still searching for his first league goal in a blue shirt.

The memes will fade. The miss will slip into trivia. What lingers is whether Vazquez – and Birmingham’s home form – can turn tight margins into something far more decisive as the season gathers pace.