Goal-den Graham’s a pain for glum Zola
GIANFRANCO ZOLA blamed “silly mistakes’’ as his Blues reign stretched to eight matches without a win.
His side had gone ahead through Lukas Jutkiewicz’s third-minute penalty – his 10th goal this season.
But Danny Graham lashed home an equaliser in first-half stoppage time.
It is now five away games without a win and Zola felt his side were guilty of allowing their opponents back into the game.
He said: “I’m disappointed because we created our own problems. We went one up, in total control, a great chance to get the second goal. And then we stopped.
“We started making silly mistakes. We allowed them back. We fed their confidence by making those silly choices. So that disappoints me. “We let them off the hook.” The point leaves the Blues firmly in mid-table but Zola believes his side will eventually get it right.
He said: “We’re going to get there for sure because the team has desire and determination to achieve that.”
Blackburn are only out of the bottom three on goal difference but boss Owen Coyle said the salvaged point could be crucial.
He said: “It wasn’t the start anybody envisaged.
“It’s such an avoidable penalty and that plays into Birmingham’s hands.
“At 10 minutes in, given we’d started with two strikers, we had to change. From that point on, we dominated.
“We got the equaliser on the stroke of half time and it’s such a wonderful team goal – the passing, the movement and exquisite finish.
“It was no more than we deserved at that point because we’d dominated from 15 minutes in.”
Coyle added: “I don’t recall too many chances in the second half so, given the poor start, we were certainly worthy of three points.
“But there was a valuable lesson and that is if you can’t get three points, make sure you don’t lose the game. We did that and got one point.
“Who’s to say that won’t be a very important point?”