Rangers loanee names ex-Celtic coach as key driver of winter move as new boss gives him what Clement couldn't

A Rangers loanee has described how a former Celtic coach helped convince him to put Ibrox in the past for now.

Kieran Dowell swapped Rangers for Birmingham City on a loan deal until the end of the season in the winter transfer window. He has impressed in the early stages of his time at St Andrew’s, scoring in a 4-0 win over Cambridge United this midweek.

Former Celtic assistant boss Chris Davies is the man in charge of the League One club who are closing in on an instant return to the Championship after relegation last campaign. Davies joined Celtic in 2016 and left with Brendan Rodgers in 2019 to join Leicester City before joining Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham almost two years ago.

Dowell says it was Davies who proved a key motivator for a switch south of the border as he offered the minutes Rangers boss Philippe Clement couldn’t. He told Birmingham Live: “I’m buzzing with the start. It was nice to go into the starting line-up so quickly, I think that’s helped me to settle in and build up relationships with the players who I’m around on the pitch.

“It’s a very fluid formation with the swing of Ethan going up on the right, so I guess the right side of the pitch probably suits me best as a left footer,” Dowell commented. “I’ve played a few positions so far and he spoke to me about that before I came to the club, so I knew that was to be expected. He’s a great manager and one of the reasons why I came to the club.”

“To be honest, it was probably just more of a chance to start enjoying my footy again. I’ve come to a club that’s dominating the ball and playing positive football and that’s what it’s going like so far.

“The manager alluded to how dominant the team is before I came and he was right. In the games I’ve played it’s been good to be a part of, with the possession we have.

“The reality of my situation was that I have not played as much as I wanted to in the last 18 months, so I am grateful to the club for giving me that platform to play again. It was probably the only club in League One I wanted to go to, because when I spoke with Craig Gardner and the manager I could see that this was not a League One team, not a League One club, so I was very excited to join and be a part of the journey over the next few months."