A full version of the BirminghamWorld Q&A with Charlie Haffenden.
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00:00Charlie, starting with West Bromwich Albion and obviously Tony Mowbray's arrival now.
00:06He obviously left Birmingham City last season with the illness issues and it was sort of
00:11a real disappointment in terms of his story going there and possibly helping them survive
00:18but it seems like Blues' relegation has sort of helped them rather than hindered. He's
00:24back in management, he's got so much experience back at West Bromwich Albion, a very, very
00:29long time after leaving them, albeit, but what does it sort of do to West Brom now for
00:35the remainder of the season? I mean, obviously the manager search went on for a bit longer
00:39than a lot of Albion fans would have hoped but they wanted to try and get it right. I
00:42mean, Mowbray's a real safe pair of hands you feel and who will surely get them into
00:48the play-offs at least. What's sort of changed? What can Albion fans hope for for the remainder
00:53of this season with Tony Mowbray back at the wheel?
00:57It's so good to have Mowbray back, honestly. Having covered Birmingham City as well when
01:02he left after just a month or so, it was devastating because he's such a nice bloke, a proper footballing
01:07bloke who is one of the best you'll meet in the sport, to be honest. Just so genuine,
01:12so pure and just got such determination to win and not just win through the means of
01:17defending or whatever it takes but in an attacking and entertaining sense as well. I think Albion
01:21fans have seen that in his first couple of games in charge. Obviously, the defeat away
01:25at Middlesbrough wasn't ideal, not clinical at all, just one shot on target in that game
01:30but then things seemed to click in that second game against Portsmouth at the Hawthorns.
01:33One of the returns of the Hawthorns, it was a 5-1 thumping victory, 11 shots on target
01:39in that game so you can see exactly what Mowbray's trying to bring but as you mentioned, he's
01:44a safe pair of hands. One, because he's got that experience. Two, because he's already
01:48got that foundation and support from the fan base, the connection there from winning the
01:54Championship title those years ago and just his personality can bring the best out of
01:59his players. I know that West Brom haven't had the funds to necessarily transform their
02:03squad in the transfer market but making a couple of additions, Shrewd additions as well,
02:08Mowbray's very good at doing that and getting the best out of what he's got. So, fantastic
02:11appointment and so good to see him back after his illness as well.
02:15Yeah, and obviously Alex Mowat has said that Baggies fans themselves want to see them score
02:21more goals and as you mentioned there, Mowbray's return was fantastic to Hawthorns. Is that
02:26something that they can certainly expect? You know, more goals, more of a free-flowing
02:30side in comparison to Corberham's maybe lock up at times and get that 1-0 win over the
02:36line? You know, I think it seems like Mowbray's sort of do or die at times and will go for
02:41it and isn't afraid to lose.
02:43Yeah, no disrespect to Corberham but it was a little bit shut up shop at times and it
02:48wasn't too attractive, the football that was played. Sometimes it's more important, sometimes
02:51that's the way to do it for results but the amount of draws Albion were getting, goals
02:55are the priority I think and Alex Mowat is very right in saying that. I think we can
02:59see a lot more in the back of the net towards the end of the season.
03:03Charlie, looking at Wolves and obviously, you know, they're at that sort of situation
03:07now where they've tried their very best to focus on themselves. Obviously, Vitor Pereira
03:12came in and, you know, fantastic two big results and obviously a draw away at Spurs as well
03:16but two clean sheets. But, you know, in their last few home games, nine goals conceded in
03:22three home games. I mean, that is so damning for a side that are trying to hold on and
03:27trying to make an impact, you know, down the bottom of the table and trying to escape that
03:31relegation battle. You know, you see Everton obviously sort of bridging away from the pack
03:37so it's sort of less the rip switch there. They're the side that you feel Samson have
03:40probably gone at this point and it would be a marvellous turnaround for them. But, you
03:46know, that sort of gap down there is really, really increasing and Wolves have to sort
03:51of rely now on Leicester and Ipswich to underperform. I mean, they came close against Arsenal but
03:57it just was too little too late again. You know, Agbedo obviously received a man of the
04:01match so some positives there. It looks as also as if they're after another centre-back
04:06in this window. I mean, it's a massive few months for Wolves to determine whether they're
04:12going to stay up. Can you see where the next sort of win's going to come from?
04:17It's difficult, isn't it, to imagine that. We're in that period now that Gary O'Neill
04:21struggled with so much at the start of the season. All of that talk about the fixture
04:24run, the congestion, plagued so many teams in the top half. Even those that you weren't
04:28expecting to be there, the likes of Nottingham Forest, were played against Wolves in that
04:32early stage. We've now got the reverse fixtures. It's looking so, so tough and you don't want
04:37to be in Vito Pereira's shoes at the moment. But the positive, as you mentioned, is Agbedo.
04:41He has looked really strong since signing and then Kevin Danso as well. Two bids have
04:46been submitted and rejected by Lons for him. If Wolves can get Danso across the line, an
04:52experienced, strong, quick Austrian international, I think the outlook will be a bit stronger.
04:57But as you mentioned with the fixtures, Aston Villa at home is a huge one. Anything can
05:01happen in that fixture. It's such a big rivalry and we've seen over the years that the occasion
05:06can sometimes get to the villains. Wolves have had some decent results against them.
05:10Blackburn in the cup, I mean, maybe you can get some confidence from that, Wolves fans,
05:14if you can get a victory away there. I mean, if that's a defeat, it'll be even more crushing
05:18losing to a team in the division below. They've got Liverpool away from home. Bournemouth,
05:23who are doing incredibly well, beating the likes of Newcastle United, absolutely thrashing
05:27them and Forest as well. The surprise result over them. Fulham at home, they're looking
05:32decent this season, hoping for a top half finish. Everton, they look revived under David
05:36Moyes. That Southampton game away has to be a win, surely. And then we're heading into
05:41mid-March and so many games in quick succession that are so, so important. I think what Wolves
05:46fans can take, though, is the results over Man Utd and Tottenham. Obviously, the win
05:51of United and then the draw away at Tottenham. I know both of those big sides are struggling
05:55this season. They've still got the squads that are very capable of winning on their
05:58day and winning comfortably. So maybe Wolves can repeat those antics and get victories
06:04against these bigger teams in the next few weeks.
06:06On to Aston Villa and obviously a bit of a transfer update. You know, they've been ambitious
06:10in this January window, it has to be said. You know, obviously they had a bit of a clear
06:14out in the summer to meet PSR and FFP regulations. I mean, they've seemingly sort of looked at
06:21their position at halfway and said, you know, this is where we can go. We want to make sure
06:25we're signing players to ensure we get over the line. I mean, we've mentioned before the
06:29Champions League football next year might be very, very tough to achieve. But certainly
06:34European places you feel Villa will strive for now with these signings. What's the latest
06:39you can tell us and how will these new faces bolster at Villa Park?
06:44Yeah, it's been a very busy transfer window for Aston Villa. Loads and loads of speculation
06:49normally turns to nothing. But this time things are happening in this window. Unai Emery trying
06:53to sculpt that squad to the best of his ability, obviously trying to progress as far as possible
06:58in the Champions League. Hopes for top eight finish there to progress or through the play-offs
07:03to get through to the last 16, quarter-finals, semis, maybe even further if they can achieve
07:07their dreams. And then in the Premier League, it's so, so tight for those European positions.
07:11Can they beat Manchester City, Bournemouth, Forest, Chelsea for the top four and Newcastle
07:16in there as well. Top five might be enough for Champions League football. Villa need
07:20to focus on themselves and do all they can and the transfer business is showing just
07:24that. The Daniel Marlon signing, we've not seen much of him just yet. He wasn't able
07:28to play in the Champions League because he wasn't registered for this phase, but he will
07:32be able to play in the next rounds of the competition. So Jadon Filiagin leaving for
07:36Ipswich Town, £23m. That money spent directly on Marlon, I think a fantastic bit of business.
07:42Someone who's got higher quality, probably a higher ceiling as well and can play in more
07:46positions as an out-and-out striker, even if they need. Andres Garcia coming in at right
07:51back, £7m or just under. What a bargain he could turn out to be. One of Levante, Levante-style
07:57player in a Spanish Segunda division. One of the best defenders in that division for
08:02the start of this season. Can play at right back, centre-back if needed. He's 6ft1, so
08:06he's got that height for set-pieces. He can also be a threat on the counter-attack as
08:10well. Had quite a few goals in his last few appearances for Levante. Centre-back is the
08:15next area of priority. We saw Diego Carlos leave the club, Pau Torres' injury and then
08:20Tyrow Mings as well hobbling off against West Ham United. That's an area Villa are trying
08:25so hard to get a new player in. Loic Bardet seemed to be the man coming in from Sevilla,
08:31but the personal terms were an issue after bids in the region of £25m. Juan Fuitz, the
08:37former Tottenham man, he's at Villarreal, former one of Emery's players. He wants to
08:42bring him in if possible, but it's looking a little bit complicated. And then Axel Desasi,
08:47the French centre-back at Chelsea. Looks like it could be a loan deal without an option
08:52to buy. Plenty of other teams are in the conversation though. Desasi has said he wants to join Villa.
08:57He's spoken to Unai Emery already. I think we can expect movement there. And then finally,
09:02before I lose my breath, Gilles Felix, also from Chelsea, has been spoken about once again
09:07for a third successive transfer window. That couldn't be a loan if Desasi joined. You can't
09:12have two domestic loans from the same club. So, potentially a permanent deal could bubble
09:16before the end of the window.
09:18Charlie, looking at Birmingham City and obviously an incredible season so far that they're really
09:23just carrying on this incredible run, this incredible push towards the Ligue 1 title.
09:29Just showing multiple times we've mentioned the quality throughout the side, the signings
09:33they've made, the investment has always been a league above where they are and where they're
09:38supposed to be. This is an ideal thing for Blues fans. Drop, clear about a bit of deadwood,
09:44clear that sort of toxic atmosphere and have a sort of rebuilding phase and go straight
09:49back up to the championship. As we mentioned, that would have been the goal from the start
09:53of the season. It's very, very likely that they are going to achieve that.
09:57In terms of squad depth recently, sometimes around this time of the year, squads do get
10:02thin. You look at injuries and you do have to start making some adjustments, especially
10:07if you are to go further in a few competitions. Like we have mentioned, there could be more
10:11silverware on the cards for them if they are to go further in the likes of the EFL trophy
10:17and maybe even the FA Cup. I know they've got that incredibly tough draw against Newcastle.
10:22What do you make of where they are at the moment with the squad depth and how they can
10:27go on in the next few weeks?
10:30I think it's been tested to the limits over these last few weeks. Obviously, Birmingham,
10:34with their very deep pockets, were able to strengthen enough in the summer to have that
10:38squad depth. But actually testing it is a different matter in a creative sense as well.
10:42They've both been injured. So to have Mark Leonard and Taylor Gardner-Hickman stepping
10:48into those positions, Christian Bielik coming back from injury as well, Jay Stansfield was
10:53out for a little while, Keshia Anderson, Willem Willemsen. It's just been Emile Hansen. There's
10:58been so many issues that Chris Davies had to contend with. But whatever happens, he
11:02managed to just kind of break through. I know they have got that incredible squad that so
11:07many teams in the division would love and dream to have. But even so, it's difficult
11:12to have the continuity and to continue that form when there are so many players dropping
11:16out through injury or through fitness problems. So I've been really impressed.
11:19And a different side of the game was shown against Wrexham as well. Having to sit back
11:24and defend, clear away everything coming into the box. It was absolutely relentless
11:28about crosses that Wrexham were putting into that penalty area. But Christophe Clara and Ben
11:33Davies in the middle, so, so strong to head everything away, clear away. I spoke to Clara
11:39after the game as well. I asked him, would you head a brick away for this team? And he said
11:43he absolutely would. And that he's dedicated to this team, dedicated to the project. And
11:47I think that just kind of sums up the unity, the strength amongst this squad. Chris Davies
11:52has got them on such a great run, such a good high. And I can see them becoming champions,
11:56not just by a few points, but by quite some distance.