Kieran Dowell has been singled out for praise by Birmingham manager Chris Davies after the Rangers loanee opened his account for the Blues.
Dowell, 27, brought to an end a tumultuous 18 months in Glasgow when he signed a loan deal at St Andrews until the end of the season in January.
Since making the temporary switch from Rangers, the ex-Everton and Norwich City midfielder has made a big impression at Birmingham and this continued into the clash with Cambridge United.
Now, Kieran Dowell has been singled out for praise by Birmingham boss Davies as Rangers are given a boost in their hopes of shipping the midfielder out permanently.
Kieran Dowell scores first Birmingham goal
Kieran Dowell scored his first goal in a Birmingham shirt to finish off a sweeping move up the park and complete a 4-0 rout against Cambridge United.
The Ibrox loanee was also involved in the build-up to the goal, playing a neat backheel to his teammate before darting towards the box.
Dowell then found himself running on to the ball at the edge of the box and slotted it coolly into the bottom corner as the League One leaders continued their impressive form.
It’s the midfielder’s first goal since netting against Motherwell for Rangers in December 2023.
Kieran Dowell was also voted Man of the Match by Birmingham fans for his performance against Cambridge at St Andrews.
Rangers loanee ‘couldn’t have wished for better start’
Rangers fans will be wondering where was this sort of performance from Kieran Dowell during his time at Ibrox.
The midfielder struggled to make an impression in Glasgow with Dowell consigned to substitute appearances after being signed under Michael Beale in 2023.
Birmingham manager Chris Davies has also been surprised by the Rangers midfielder’s level since moving to England this winter.
The former Celtic assistant heaped praise on Dowell to raise Rangers hopes that they could ship the £832k per annum midfielder out permanently this summer.
“I’m really pleased and really impressed physically,” Davies told Birmingham Live.
“He’s not played a lot of football at Rangers but he covers some distance.
“Even his goal, he could have easily stayed back rather than follow the attack and sprinting into the box. He took his goal well. He’s got real legs.
”I’ve used him in four different positions already, he is tactically really astute, switched on, a good character, I don’t think he could have wished for a better start.”
Kieran Dowell isn’t the only Rangers loanee who played against Cambridge United either, with Ben Davies also a key part of the Birmingham team this season.
