Birmingham City boss Steve Cotterill vents frustration ahead of Leeds United clash

Birmingham City manager Steve Cotterill. Picture: Simon Bellis/Sportimage.

Phil Hay's Verdict: Leeds United show crucial ability to fight back and continue...

Cotterill bemoaned issues with “everything, absolutely everything” and told journalists that they “don’t know half” of the challenges he was facing with Birmingham two points adrift at the bottom of the Championship.

City lost 2-0 to Norwich City on Boxing Day, extending their run without a win to seven matches. The club have claimed only four in the Championship all season and scored 12 goals.

Leeds travel to Birmingham this weekend having moved to within five points of second place with a 2-1 win at Burton Albion on Boxing Day.

Cotterill was parachuted in by Birmingham’s board after the club parted company with Harry Redknapp less than a week after City were beaten by Leeds at Elland Road in September.

READ/WATCH MORE - Coach Thomas Christiansen confident Leeds United are getting better all the time

Speaking after the defeat to Norwich, a dejected Cotterill said: “We had three strikers missing. Lukas (Jutkiewicz) was our only fit striker going into the game. God knows what would have happened if we’d lost him in training.

“We started really well right up until the goal. The minute the goal goes in it’s a different game for us. We were somewhat indifferent then.

“It wasn’t a poor performance but we can’t score goals. We haven’t scored goals for a long time here. There are teams in the Championship I’ve seen who’ve played far worse than us and got a win. Our problem is that we haven’t been full of goals.

“The confidence factor was low when I came in here. Nothing changes as regards that.”

Asked if Birmingham’s situation was a “job for a psychologist”, Cotterill said: “For sure it is at the moment. It’s everything, absolutely everything. You don’t know half.”

Asked to elaborate, Cotterill said: “No. I don’t do that.”