Birmingham midfielder Lee Bowyer believes the club's recent dip in
fortunes was to be expected after their superb record-breaking run.
Blues earned deserved plaudits after embarking on a
club-record 12-match unbeaten run in the top-flight.
Alex McLeish's side have stuttered in recent weeks, suffering
back-to-back defeats as part of a spell which has seen them win
just one in six.
Bowyer believes the St Andrews outfit were briefly punching
above their weight in England's elite division and that recent
results are a more realistic measure of their abilities.
But he insists that they can continue to be competitive
provided they stick to the principles which have served them well
after earning promotion from the Championship.
Bowyer said: "What we were doing before was not realistic. We
are coming down to our level now.
"We are realising we are not going to go away and win every
game. We are going to lose at places like Fulham. That's the
reality of this league.
"At the start, had people been offered 17th place they'd have
taken that.
"But all of a sudden because of what we did, they have
expected us to keep going up and up.
"We have to be realistic. Nothing has changed from the start
of the season to now. What we did before - the unbeaten run - was
astonishing.
"But now we have to understand that we have to keep battling
away and working hard - you have to work and nick games."
