Birmingham City have had to change their midfield in recent weeks with Tomoki Iwata pressed into service at full back
16:27, 17 Oct 2025Updated 16:41, 17 Oct 2025
Tommy Doyle of Birmingham City (Image: Getty Images)
Chris Davies sees Tommy Doyle as one of his defensive midfielders rather than in a more advanced attacking role – putting him into direct competition with Marc Leonard and his favoured pairing of Paik Seung-ho and Tomoki Iwata.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s visit from Hull City, the Birmingham City manager discussed his options in the middle of the park – with Doyle’s loan from Wolves yet to really ignite.
The 24-year-old has started just twice in the Championship this season – once in a failed experiment as a No. 10 at Stoke City and then in a deeper role in the previous home game with Sheffield Wednesday when he was subbed after an hour.
Blues fans liked what they saw from the former Manchester City trainee that night and having made their feelings known when he was replaced had hoped to see him start the next game.
Addressing Doyle’s usage Davies said: “I think he’s a six by trade, he’s not a 10 by nature, especially with the way that I play the 10 with a lot of jumping to press and make runs in behind.
“He’s a footballer that gets on the ball and tries to make you play. He’s a six that can play as an eight, I would say.
“That’s where I see him more and he knows that, I’ve spoken to him about that.
“At times I’ve played him as a 10 because I didn’t want to take Paik or Iwata out of there.
“When Iwata went out, I thought Leonard is the more natural defensive one that gives us the balance in there. I’d say Tommy is a six/eight.”
Speaking to BBC WM Sport Davies went on to discuss the choice between Leonard and Doyle, with the Scot given the nod – perhaps suprisingly – for the trip to Wrexham last time out.
With Iwata pressed into action at right back, Davies opted for Leonard in the middle of the park but denied it was a case of the latter needing to ‘earn trust’ out of possession.
“I think Tommy can do that as well,” he said. “I think with Marc, I think it’s the balance of who he’s alongside as well.
“I think Tommy and Marc are both really good passers, Tommy’s got this real creativity to his game.
“Marc, being with with me for that longer period, is so embedded in all the principles of play that we want and how I want them to move in there and everything.
“Tommy’s an excellent player but you can see that Marc’s really up to speed with exactly how it functions for us in there, hence why he’s performed so well.
“Both are important players, I think with Marc it was a really good fit for that game, to be honest, and I think he seized his opportunity.
“But as I’ve said to Tommy there is plenty of football there for him as well, it’s just a case of keep earning it in training and in the opportunities that you do get.
“He is a player that does catch the eye with how he plays but within all this, what I have to do as a manager is think about the whole balance of the team.
“How is it going to function? What do we need to be successful in this match? I weigh all that up into it as well.
“But we’ve got other players that you look at and you think ‘They’re exciting players’ but it’s just always the balance.
“That’s what I always try and look for and I was sure that for that game against Wrexham that was going to suit us more.
“And like I say, Marc took his chance, but what I would say with Tommy is he’s still getting up to speed himself as well in terms of everything.
“So it’s certainly not a case of that I don’t trust Tommy in any way, it’s just a case of using the squad effectively.”
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