Tony Mowbray has resigned as manager of Birmingham City to focus on his recovery from ill health.
Mowbray was initially appointed manager in January but was forced to step back in mid-February due to the need for medical treatment of an unspecified issue, which saw his assistant – Mark Venus followed by Gary Rowett take temporary charge for the rest of season.
Birmingham however were relegated from the Championship to League One on the final day of the season despite a 1-0 home win over Norwich, with results elsewhere having failed to go in their favour.
Explaining his decision to stand down despite having continued “positive and constructive dialogue with Tom Wagner, Garry Cook and Craig Gardner”, Mowbray revealed that he “will not be fully fit” to lead the club going into next season so has resigned to allow the club to move forward.
On his recovery plans, Mowbray revealed that he plans to focus upon his family but will eventually return to football management in due course.
“Once I have fully recovered and have spent some quality time with my family, I intend to make a return to football management at the appropriate moment. I hope that the privacy of my family and I will be respected at this time.”
Mowbray proceeded to pay tribute to Chairman, Wagner for his “genuine warmth” during a “challenging time,” for both himself and the club in recent months, but iterated that Wagner and Cook can lead the Blues forward into a stronger future.
Wagner added that the club “are disappointed” to see Mowbray resign but hold “respect” for his decision to put his health, family and club’s best interests first, despite displaying “excellent leadership skills and a work ethic that galvanised all around him.”
Chief Executive Officer, Cook added: “We have been looking forward to Tony returning to the Club and to continue the great work that he started earlier this year. Unfortunately, it is not to be.
“Preparation for the new season has already begun and Tony told us that, based on his treatment and recovery programme, he would not be able to do the job that is required before the new season begins.
“I would personally like to commend Tony for informing us of his decision so soon after the end of the season. It provides us the opportunity to undertake a rigorous search process to identify the right leader to take our club forward and have that person in place before the start of pre-season.
“On behalf of everyone at the Club, and our supporters, I would like to thank Tony for the excellent job that he did for Blues. We wish Tony a full and speedy recovery.”
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