It was a bad weekend for the Premier League new boys.
Wolves, Burnley and Birmingham have made encouraging starts to the season, but they were all on the end of bad results as the top flight returned to action.
I actually tipped Birmingham to go down but after seeing them a couple of times this season I have been pretty impressed.
Alex McLeish's side have only got four points from five games but they have produced some encouraging performances along the way.
They were unlucky to lose away to Manchester United on the opening weekend of the season and they can consider themselves unfortunate to have been beaten by local rivals Aston Villa on Sunday.
The derby at St Andrews was a big test for them and they played well, only to lose to a late goal from Gabriel Agbonlahor.
Blues went into the game with Teemu Tainio and Stuart Parnaby at full-back, which could have been a weak link for them against the pace of James Milner and Ashley Young.
But Roger Johnson and Franck Queudrue marshalled the back four really well and they showed they are going to be a tough team to break down for even the stronger Premier League sides.
Johnson in particular has settled in straight away since his move from Cardiff. He is commanding on the floor and in the air, he reads the game well and even showed a willingness and ability to carry the ball forward.
They have midfield players who work really hard, get back and defend in numbers and show they can play together.
Their style has surprised me - they are quite pleasing on the eye and try to pass the ball.
GOAL-SHY BLUES
Blues were second in the Championship but only the 11th highest scorers last season
Their top scorers last year - Phillips (14) and Cameron Jerome (9) - have played just 92 and 119 minutes respectively this campaign
And when they were under the cosh their back four and midfield stayed together as a unit and Villa struggled to create clear-cut chances.
However, the one thing that stood out was the lack of options they had up front.
Lone striker Garry O'Connor typified their spirit by getting back to help in midfield, but when Birmingham got the ball he was left pretty isolated and he is not much of a goal threat.
What happened was Birmingham were unable to hold on to possession and the ball kept coming back at their defence, which creates constant pressure.
Lee Bowyer is their most forward-thinking midfielder and he tried his best to ease that pressure by providing some support for O'Connor, but, as energetic as he is, he does struggle for a bit of pace.
Birmingham produced another strong defensive effort against Villa
He gets into good positions off the shoulder of O'Connor, but he is not the Bowyer of old that used to break into the box and finish.
I look through their team and do not see where the goals are going to come from.
They have Kevin Phillips on the bench but he is past his best.
With Cameron Jerome out injured, one option could be Christian Benitez, who looks like he could offer them that missing ingredient.
The man known as Chucho appears to be the one player they have that could provide a bit of pace and direct running.
Benitez came off the bench and occupied a similar position to Bowyer. The difference was he has the pace to worry the two centre-halves so they dropped off him. He was able to get to the edge of the area - providing their best position of the match - and he should have put the winger through on goal only to take the wrong option and shoot instead.
BIRMINGHAM SO FAR
Man Utd 1-0 Birmingham
Birmingham 1-0 Portsmouth
Birmingham 0-0 Stoke
Tottenham 2-1 Birmingham
Birmingham 0-1 Aston Villa
If you are tight at the back you only need a couple of players to chip in with goals.
Fulham managed just 39 goals last year but still finished seventh in the table. Stoke scored 38 and stayed up comfortably.
Birmingham's 1-0 defeat to Villa means they have scored only one goal from open play in five games. There is talent in the side, but will they score enough to stay up?
The hardest thing to do in football is to hit the back of the net. That is why the strikers get the big money.
McLeish's problem is finding the players in his squad who can do that for him.
Lee Dixon was talking to BBC Sport's Andrew McKenzie.
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
Bookmark with:
What are these?