Iwata goal 'the pick' so far, says Birmingham boss

Tomoki Iwata's tally of four goals for Blues has already quadrupled his number of strikes in a Celtic shirt

Japanese international Tomoki Iwata has been a big hit in his brief Birmingham City career so far - but boss Chris Davies admits his goal output has been a pleasant surprise.

Four goals in nine appearances is none too shabby, especially for a supposed defensive midfielder, who scored just once in three years in his 42 appearances for previous club Celtic.

But Blues head coach Davies says the August deadline day signing's stunning early strike against Bolton Wanderers was "the pick" of his goals so far in a Birmingham shirt.

"We bought him as a defensive midfielder and he's turned into a great goalscorer," Davies told BBC Radio WM.

"The ones he has scored have been at a really high level. He's arriving onto things from different angles and from different positions.

"But this one was probably the pick because it dropped down from a height and on his wrong foot too - and it was an exceptional technique.

"But it's more than just his goalscoring. He's humble and he works hard for the team. Every game he's up for it and that's why he's so important for us. Even right up to the end, we were 2-0 up, he was pressing and chasing."

Blues went into the international break on the back of their first league defeat of the season, by Charlton Athletic at The Valley on 5 October.

But they have returned from their week off well with two-goal wins at Lincoln City last Saturday and a commanding performance to beat Bolton, even if they did leave it late before clinching it.

The attendance - 25,793 - was down on this season's previous home league average gate of 26,812, but the result stretched Blues' lead over second-placed Wrexham to four points, with a game in hand.

Blues now face their third tough test in eight days on Saturday when they go to Nottinghamshire to face Nigel Clough's fourth-placed Mansfield Town in a lunchtime clash.

"It's a big week," Blues defender Ben Davies said. "But we've made a good start to it with six points - and this has given us a real lift going into the Mansfield game.

"It's an early kick-off away and their crowd will be up for it. But we were going well before the Charlton game and we've so far bounced back well from it and want to get another run going.

"It's been a good team effort. Everyone felt in tune on the pitch and, although it took a long time for the second goal to come, the timing of it killed them off."

His namesake, boss Chris, added: "There was a period in the first half that was one of our strongest of the season. We had a relentlessness about us.

“It was about pressing, intensity, hard work, running and chasing and we did that. It came together nicely and we created some good chances."

Chris Davies and Ben Davies were talking to BBC Radio WM's Richard Wilford