Troy Deeney follows the instructions of Lee Bowyer, Birmingham manager, as he arrives on-field for his Blues debut
Birmingham City was able to beat Derby County with goals from Scott Hogan, and moved up to fourth place in the Championship.
Hogan scored his third goal of the season in close range during the first half, before Bela won the match late.
Derby had more possession, but aside from one Tom Lawrence effort during the second half they struggled with creating chances and dropped to 16th.
Troy Deeney was a substitute in the second half of his Birmingham debut.
Deeney was the focus of all attention prior to the match. He had joined the club that he had supported as a boy just before the closing of the summer transfer window. This would have been the end to his 11-year association Watford.
He was only a substitute as Lee Bowyer, the manager, decided to keep Lukas Jutkiewicz & Hogan at the front. It was the former Brentford man and Aston Villa man who won.
It was however due to a poor backpass by Lee Buchanan (Rams left-back), which allowed Jutkiewicz to score. Kelle Roos denied him at first, but Hogan was able to pass the ball across to Hogan who made no mistakes from close range.
This was a win for Bowyer's team. Bela scored a second goal in a counter-attack to finish the game. It was their third clean sheet in six matches and they have conceded less in the Championship than them.
It also showed Derby's weaknesses in attack, despite having 67% possession. Lawrence came closest to saving Matija Skic's goal in the second half. However, only Sheffield United has scored less than Wayne Rooney’s team who managed just four goals in six matches.
Sky Sports interviewed Lee Bowyer, Birmingham City manager:
"It was very satisfying getting our first three points at home before the fans. We kept the score clean, created opportunities and worked hard together, which was very satisfying.
"Because we have the attacking third players, if we keep clean sheets we will win a lot more games. All I can say is "Well done" to the players, because it's not just the goalkeeper and defenders. It's the entire team.
"There will be lows but we can still enjoy tonight. We can only keep trying to build and move forward as a club. That's what we do.
Sky Sports interviewed Wayne Rooney, Derby County manager:
"We played some good stuff, but we didn’t really have that many clear-cut opportunities which was frustrating. However, I don’t believe Birmingham did enough to win this game.
"It was a mistake in the first and second goals, but we weren’t at our best tonight. Although we didn't win, I feel Birmingham did not do enough.
"There will be mistakes in the way that we play, and I accept full responsibility."
