Birmingham secured an important point in their battle against relegation with a hard-earned 1-1 draw at play-off contenders Hull.
Ozan Tufan looked to have consigned Blues to a 13th away defeat when he headed home in the first half.
But Hull, still in the Sky Bet Championship play-offs and now unbeaten in six, were sloppy in front of goal and could not score the second which their dominance arguably warranted.
They were punished after 82 minutes through Lukas Jutkiewicz’s firm header which moved Birmingham, still without unwell manager Tony Mowbray, a point above the drop zone.
With the visitors clearly short of confidence – only Rotherham have a weaker Championship away record – Liam Rosenior’s men were, unsurprisingly, keen to seize control early on.
Fabio Carvalho’s smart hit was sharply deflected for a corner by Emanuel Aiwu, after which Jean Michael Seri warmed John Ruddy’s palms from distance on seven minutes.
But just when it felt like Hull would kick on, Birmingham came desperately close to opening the scoring just 60 seconds later.
Junior Bacuna too easily beat Ryan Giles on the right before crossing hard and low towards the near post.
Hull centre-back Jacob Greaves looked to have snubbed out the threat, but his sliding defensive block skewed inches wide of the right post.
The hosts were fleetingly knocked off their stride following that let-off, but they always looked a threat in possession and gradually retained a strong foothold into the game.
Mark Venus, however, will still have been most disappointed by the manner in which Blues conceded after 25 minutes.
Abdulkadir Omur’s fierce corner was flicked on by Greaves towards the far post, but Tufan was still given too much space to head home.
Turkey international Tufan came close to adding a second after 40 minutes when he let rip from the edge of penalty area following good work from Jaden Philogene.
The ball bounced awkwardly but Ruddy did brilliantly to palm the ball onto the base of the left post, with Carvalho a stud’s length away from scoring on the follow-up.
Hull largely bossed proceedings after the restart, but they were often guilty of overcomplicated build-up play when a direct approach would have been more beneficial.
No better was this illustrated than after 73 minutes when Philogene cashed in on a defensive mix-up but tried to score the perfect goal when a simple strike would have had Ruddy in big trouble.
But with Hull goalkeeper Ryan Allsop a virtual bystander, few inside the MKM Stadium would have bet against a home win.
That was until substitute Alex Pritchard whipped over a teasing cross from the right, with Jutkiewicz heading home from close range to earn Birmingham what could prove to be a huge point.
Liverpool have to expect change under Slot, says Zenden
Former Liverpool midfielder Boudewijn Zenden admits there will be a change for the Reds under Arne Slot but says the club should be ready to buy into his philosophy.
Liverpool confirmed on Monday that Slot would take over from Jurgen Klopp, who managed his final game at Anfield against Wolves on Sunday.
The Dutchman had already announced that he would be taking the job in a press conference, with Klopp then leading a chant of Slot’s name in his farewell speech.
Slot has reportedly signed a three-year deal and will officially take charge from June 1.
Asked if the former Feyenoord manager can avoid a painful transition when he begins his new job, Zenden said Liverpool need to be prepared for any outcome.
"Well, let's put it this way. Someone said life is like a box of chocolates, you know, you never know what you're going to get until it's there, and it's the same with Slot," he told Stats Perform.
"You know, there's going to be a change. You never know what the change will be like. As I said, there will be a change, that's for sure.
"For example, if you look at Arsenal, what I admire about the Arsenal people in charge is that the beginning of Arteta at Arsenal. I'm sure you remember well, it was painful for the fans, for the people that had the love for the Gunners.
"They stuck to Arteta, they stuck to his vision, his way of playing, and gradually the team that he built, with his philosophy and the players that he took in, that go with that philosophy.
"For me, it's a huge pleasure to see that if you stick to someone, if you stick to the manager, and you're convinced of his ideas, that you see where this will get you.
"There will be a change. Am I afraid? Well, of course, I'm not afraid, concerned, no, I think you have to just live with it.
"I'm sure in Liverpool, they'll keep their head up high when they go through that storm if it's there. But no, it's going to be a change, of course, but when Slot takes over, I hope that it'll go down well."
Slot led Feyenoord to the Eredivisie title in 2023 and was named Eredivisie Manager of the Year on two occasions, while also winning the KNVB Beker this season.
While some have questioned if Slot will be able to deal with the big stars at the club, Zenden does not believe that will be a problem.
"Yeah, but listen, it is what it is. Of course, Feyenoord this is nowhere near the magnitude of Liverpool. Feyenoord is a big club, but Liverpool is a massive club. So, there's certainly the expectations that come with the club," he added.
"Also, when you are in a big club, there are big players with big egos and I think what could help Slot as well is that he used to play himself.
"He knows what's happening in the mind of a player, he knows what happens in the dressing room. So, he knows a little bit about how these things can be done can work out how it works out, but it definitely will be interesting to see how he deals with these different situations.
"I think Jurgen Klopp over the years also had a few, I'm not going say run-ins, but of course, there's been issues, but they've all been solved and taken care of, one or the other."
Kjaer to leave Milan at end of season
Milan defender Simon Kjaer will leave the Serie A club at the end of the current campaign, he announced on Tuesday.
The 35-year-old Denmark captain arrived at the San Siro in January 2020 on loan from Sevilla before signing a permanent deal at the end of that season.
In a video shared on Milan's page on the social media platform X, Kjaer said: "This is my club. It's my place. It always will be.
"My time here was the pride and dream that gave me great joy and a lot of satisfaction in my career and life.
Kjaer played 120 matches for the club and won the Serie A title in 2022, but has struggled with injuries this season, managing just 24 appearances in all competitions.
Pochettino leaves Chelsea after one season
Mauricio Pochettino will leave Chelsea by mutual consent after one season in charge, the club announced on Tuesday.
Despite a poor start to the season, Pochettino led Chelsea to a sixth-place finish, confirming a European place - an improvement on their 12th-place finish in 2022-23.
He also led them to the EFL Cup final and the semi-final of the FA Cup.
Speculation surrounded Pochettino's position during the latter stages of the Premier League campaign, though he remained tight-lipped about his future.
The Argentinian had one year left on his contract but now leaves the club with immediate effect.
In a club statement, Pochettino said: "Thank you to the Chelsea ownership group and Sporting Directors for the opportunity to be part of this football club's history.
"The club is now well positioned to keep moving forward in the Premier League and Europe in the years to come."
Sporting Directors Laurence Stewart and Paul Winstanley said: "On behalf of everyone at Chelsea, we would like to express our gratitude to Mauricio for his service this season.
"He will be welcome back to Stamford Bridge any time, and we wish him all the very best in his future coaching career."
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
