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Birmingham City supporters have witnessed some unbelievable performances from their players this term on the road to success.
Birmingham may have lost the EFL Trophy final to Peterborough United but that disappointing loss is unable to remove the gloss off a wonderful campaign.
The ultimate goal was winning automatic promotion to the Championship and they’ve achieved that in style, cantering to the League One title.
There are only six matches left for the Blues this term, although Birmingham can still break a League One record by surpassing Wolves total of 103 points in a third-tier campaign.
That would be some achievement from Chris Davies and his players, even with the huge financial backing, though supporters were given a reason to feel angry this week.
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Birmingham City fans angered that Christoph Klarer wasn’t nominated for EFL award
Birmingham’s midfield dynamo Tomoki Iwata was nominated for the EFL Player of the Season award alongside Wycombe Wanderers striker Richard Kone and Barnsley’s Davis Keillor-Dunn.
But, despite Iwata deserving his nomination after an incredible campaign, Blues supporters felt that centre-back Christoph Klarer was hard done by.
Klarer has been ‘dominant’ in the heart of their defence and has played a huge role in Birmingham winning the title, with many fans believing he’s the best player in the league.
“Love Iwata. Proper love n all but how has Klarer not been nominated??,” one fan questioned.
“No Christoph Klarer is that shortlist is wild. Easily the best player in League One,” another agreed while a third commented: “How Klarer has been overlooked for this is outrageous. Best player in this division by a mile. Absolute Rolls Royce of a player.”
“Klarer is the best player in this league by a mile, has been colossal all season and he’s not on there?” someone posted and a sixth said: “I’m in complete disbelief how Christoph Klarer hasn’t been nominated/shortlisted for player of the season.”
Klarer’s phenomenal League One campaign in numbers
Klarer was only signed for £3.5 million in the summer from SV Darmstadt 98 and since then, the 24-year-old has been a colossal presence in the heart of defence.
Standing at 6 foot 3 inches, the Austrian has cleared everything in his way, winning ground duels and aerial duels against his opponents while showing a calmness in possession.
Christoph Klarer’s League One statistics
- 38 matches played
- 15 clean sheets
- 88% pass completion
- 1.8 tackles per game
- 3.8 balls recovered per game
- 5.7 clearances per game
- 7.2 (67%) duels won
The above metrics explain why Birmingham fans are annoyed that he wasn’t nominated for the prestigious EFL award, with Klarer’s performances going under the radar.