28 February 2023 , 10:39
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Harlee Dean led a no-holds-barred dressing-room inquest after Birmingham City slumped to their ninth defeat in 11.
The 31-year-old centre-half held the floor as John Eustace’s squad looked for answers to their alarming dip in form. Carlton Morris’s winner two minutes after half-time saw play-off chasing Luton Town emerge from St Andrew’s with all three points, deepening the gloom at the troubled Championship club.
The Blues’ nose-dive has been stark following the return to action after the World Cup. Three wins and one draw from 13 outings has set the alarm bells ringing after a campaign of early promise evaporated. Eustace’s side could have gone into the mid-term break in sixth had they beaten Sunderland in the final match before the hiatus.
However, the Black Cats recorded victory and since then there has been little to cheer about as far as the long-suffering fans are concerned.
That was clearly the final straw for Dean who spoke up after the defeat to the Hatters as the players conducted their own internal dialogue after the final whistle.
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A source said: “Emotions were running high and patience is clearly running thin. At least Dean showed that he cares enough to start calling out one or two.
“He’s had his ups and downs - but at a time when the club’s crying out for leadership at least he showed some.”
Eustace was not understood to be in the dressing room at the time. The club has declined to comment.