FINDING A WEI
Andi sinks Brum... then winds up fans
EX-ASTON VILLA star Andi Weimann wound up Birmingham fans with a controversial full-time celebration after scoring West Brom’s winner.
Just a week after crowd trouble overshadowed Albion’s FA Cup tie with Wolves, the Bristol City loanee ran over to visiting fans displaying the score with his hands.
There were more issues in the stands with Juninho Bacuna reporting alleged racist abuse against him in added time.
Baggies boss Carlos Corberan was hoping for quiet afternoon after becoming a father to his second child, son Dario, in the early hours.
And for 85 minutes he got it until Weimann’s goal.
Corberan said: “Everything’s OK, the boy understood the faster the better before the game and everything has been healthy for my wife and for him. It’s a big thing for me and my family.
“This week has been a very demanding and challenging week. When you have a personal situation you normally can’t rest.
“I’ve a lot of respect for Andi, he is someone who has built a very good career in the country. He has deserved everything he has done.
“I didn’t see his celebration but I thought he was enjoying it with our fans.”
Former West Brom manager Tony Mowbray, back with Birmingham, said: “I don’t want to make a comment criticising the kid. He wanted to get off to a good start, football is an emotional game.
“He would not be the first player to score to goad the opposition fans so we should not be too harsh on him.”
Until the last five minutes, this was as bad a match as you will be likely to see.
Neither side had a serious chance in a drab first half. Early in the second, Baggies defender Cedric Kipre was lucky not to pick up a second yellow for fouling Siriki Dembele.
The Blues had a chance with Kevin Long flicking against the post from Andre Dozzell’s corner.
It proved to be a big moment as Weimann beat Krystian Bielik with a predatory goal from Darnell Furlong’s cross for his first Baggies goal.
There was a heated reaction to Weimann’s celebrations at the whistle.
This was a first Birmingham league loss for Mowbray and they are now just four points above the drop zone. He added: “We need to find a way to start winning.” WEST BROM: Palmer 6; Furlong 7, Bartley 7, Kipre 6 (Chalobah (70) 6), Townsend 7; Yokuslu 6, Mowatt 7; Wallace 6 (Weimann (69) 7), Swift 6 (Johnston (62) 6), Fellows 6 (Dike (83) 6); Thomas-asante 6 (Marshall (62) 6) BIRMINGHAM: Etheridge 6; Laird 7, Long 7, Bielik 6, Buchanan 6 (Bacuna (57) 6); Sunjic 7 (Anderson (75) 6), Dozzell 6; Miyoshi 6 (Paik Seung-ho (68) 6), Pritchard 5 (James (46) 6), Dembele 6; Stansfield 6 STAR MAN: Darnell Furlong – Steady at the back and delivered the cross for Albion’s winner. REF: David Webb 6