Who will replace Craig Gardner as Birmingham City's director of football?

Birmingham City have commenced their recruitment process for a new director of football following Craig Gardner's decision to step down from the role.

According to the Daily Telegraph's John Percy, boyhood Birmingham fan Gardner will leave the club after five years in various administrative positions, which includes 15 months as director of football.

The former Birmingham player, who made 125 appearances across two spells and was a part of Alex McLeish's League Cup winning side in 2010/11, was heavily influential in the club's sale to current owners Knighthead Capital in July 2023.

While there were several transfer successes under Gardner's watch, he faced scrutiny following Birmingham's unsuccessful bid to achieve a top-six finish in the Championship last season, with multiple purchases - including Kyogo Furuhashi and Kanya Fujimoto - failing to have the desired impact.

As Birmingham prepare to make a critical appointment in their ambitious plan, we've taken a look at the candidates who could be in the frame to succeed Gardner.

Kristjaan Speakman

The rumour mill has already churned out Kristjaan Speakman's name as Gardner's potential successor and the 47-year-old has a long-term affiliation with the Blues having served as the club's academy manager for 10 years.

Speakman subsequently moved to Sunderland in December 2020 where he held the role as sporting director for five years until leaving the Black Cats in February 2026.

Sunderland were in League One at the time of Speakman's arrival and he was a fundamental factor in the club's comprehensive rebuild from a team that struggled to escape the third tier into a Premier League outfit.

Current Birmingham player Patrick Roberts applauded Speakman on his influence on reviving Sunderland's fortunes, crediting him as a "central figure" to the Black Cats' ascent, and the former Derby County academy coach would perhaps relish a pioneering role at a club he dedicated more than a decade of service.

Dan Ashworth

Dan Ashworth is another name circling in Birmingham's director of football conversation, but it would likely require a lucrative offer to prise him from his current role as the FA's chief football officer.

Ashworth's reputation as an elite strategist remains intact despite an acrimonious end to his brief spell as Manchester United's sporting director, where he lasted just five months following multiple clashes with INEOS' leadership concerning recruitment and the club's long-term vision.

The 55-year-old previously held the position of sporting director at Newcastle United, which followed a hugely successful three-year stint as Brighton's technical director.

Ashworth has close ties to the second city having previously held an advisory role with Warwickshire County Cricket Club, but any pursuit of one of the FA's leading executives would be highly ambitious and perhaps out of Knighthead's reach.

Mike Rigg

Mike Rigg making the transition from academy technical director to director of football would represent a safe appointment by the Birmingham board.

Rigg's held various roles throughout his career ranging from chief scout at Blackburn Rovers to technical director at Manchester City, where he was tasked with overseeing player acquisitions during the opening four years of Sheikh Mansour's reign.

The 55-year-old subsequently worked for the Football Association, QPR, Fulham and Burnley as a technical director, before commencing his role overseeing Birmingham's academy in April 2024.

Having led academy operations, Rigg will likely have ideas on how to address the lack of youth players making the jump into the first-team.

Matt Crocker

The boat may have sailed on Matt Crocker's availability as the former US Soccer sporting director left his role two months before the World Cup to take up an identical position with Saudi Arabia, but his body of work with the USMNT will likely have been acknowledged by Knighthead.

Perhaps the most appealing element of Crocker's CV is his success as Southampton's academy manager during a golden seven years from 2007. The Welshman subsequently spent six years with the FA as head of coaching and development, where he introduced fruitful projects such as 'England DNA' - a plan to expand specialist coaching roles within the governing body.

He returned to St Mary's in 2020 as director of football and oversaw a period where the Saints finished 11th in the Premier League and reached an FA Cup semi-final before departing in December 2022.