The best Birmingham City XI of the 21st century includes 68-goal legend and free-kick master

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We’re looking forward to seeing what the current team can do in 2025/26, but we’re going back in time now to put together the best Birmingham City XI of the past 25 years.

After absolutely steamrolling the competition in League One last season, Birmingham City could well be the team to watch in the coming campaign.

The Blues have big ambitions, wealthy owners, and one of the most exciting young coaches in the game in Chris Davies. In fact, over 50% of the fans we questioned recently suggested Birmingham will finish in the top six in 2025/26.

But it hasn’t always been this way. Through the ups and downs of the last quarter century, we’ve picked out the cream of the crop and compiled the best Birmingham City XI since the turn of the millennium.

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Is this Birmingham City’s best XI of the 21st century?

Maik Taylor

While Birmingham City have had some top goalkeepers over the years, few have had the longevity of Maik Taylor. With 242 appearances for the Blues between 2003 and 2011, Taylor was there for much of the top flight seasons, and is now the goalkeeping coach at the club. He’s a legend.

Stephen Carr

He may be better known for his time at Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United, but Stephen Carr still managed to rack up 121 appearances for the Blues. Carr came out of a career break to turn out for Birmingham, and even became the club captain during his time at St. Andrew’s.

Matt Upson

A four-year stay at Birmingham saw Matt Upson register 128 games for the club, as well as making a small breakthrough with the England squad during that time. Upson was a towering centre-half who put his body on the line, was great in the air, and was a real leader, too.

Christoph Klarer

It was a close call here, with Kenny Cunningham a very honourable mention for the other centre-half role, but we’re giving the spot to current Birmingham star Christoph Klarer. The big Austrian does need to continue to prove himself over the next few years, but he’s a beast of a defender and one of the best players in the EFL right now.

Martin Grainger

Much like other members of this defence, Martin Grainger was a very dependable member of the Birmingham squad. With a whopping 238 appearances for the Blues between 1996 and 2005, Grainger is a tremendous servant to the club, and is a great example of those good, old-fashioned full-backs.

Craig Gardner

Another man who still has a role at the club, Craig Gardner is now the Sporting Director at Birmingham City, which tells you just how highly they regard him. In his playing days, Gardner was a real terrier in the middle of the park, had a keen eye for goal, and a brilliant range of passing in his arsenal.

Robbie Savage

This may be the most surprising inclusion in our attempt at the best Birmingham City XI, and we were very close to putting David Dunn in here, but Robbie Savage does deserve some respect for his playing career. He may be an entertaining pundit now, but Savage lived up to his name on the pitch and brought all that fiery energy to the Birmingham midfield for three years.

Seb Larsson

The former Arsenal youth star first joined Birmingham on loan in 2006 but quickly made that move a permanent one just six months later. He stuck around until 2011, making 205 appearances for the club and registering 52 goal contributions. Seb Larsson is best remembered for his incredible free-kicks, some of which are the best you’re likely to see in the Premier League era.

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Jermaine Pennant

Another potentially controversial entry in the best Birmingham XI is Jermaine Pennant. On his day, he was one of the most exciting and productive wingers in the top flight, rivalling the likes of Aaron Lennon. He had his issues off the field, granted, but in terms of raw talent, he’s one of the best to come through the doors at St. Andrew’s.

Demarai Gray

There’s a real chance Demarai Gray could become a Birmingham City signing this summer, if the Blues can work out a deal for their former star. Gray broke through the academy at the Midlands club in 2012 but had to move on in 2016, joining Leicester City. He loves the club, though, and was one of the most intriguing talents to emerge from the youth ranks (until a certain Bellingham duo turned up).

Lukas Jutkiewicz

He’s just retired from football after serving Birmingham City for an astounding 357 games over the last nine years, scoring 68 goals in the process. Known affectionately as Juke, there may be better strikers to have turned out for the Blues, but no one comes close to the impact this big forward has had at the club.

That said, we will give a quick honourable mention to Mikael Forssell, who scored 37 goals in 118 games for Birmingham between 2003 and 2008.