Former Celtic employees Chris Davies and Tomoki Iwata have been nominated for a multitude of awards, following Birmingham City’s successful season in the EFL.
Ex-Celtic midfielder Iwata has been nominated for the EFL League One Player of the Season, while former assistant manager Davies has been shortlisted for Manager of the Season.
Davies’ first foray into senior management has been a successful one, with his team having already been crowned League One champions with six games still left to play. Amassing 95 points in 40 games, their 29 league wins is a club record for Birmingham.
The 40-year-old was at Celtic from 2016 to 2019 as assistant manager to Brendan Rodgers, before leaving with the Irishman to join Leicester City in the Premier League midway through the 2018/19 season. He and Rodgers left the Foxes in 2023, before Davies teamed up with Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham Hotspur, joining Birmingham just under a year later.
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Rodgers attempted to lure Davies back to Celtic for a second spell, though he made the move to Spurs and Postecoglou instead.
As for Iwata, the Japan defensive midfielder played for Celtic between 2023 and 2024, following a mid-season move from Postecoglou’s former club Yokohama F Marinos. He made 42 total appearances for Postecoglou and Rodgers in that time, scoring one goal in the process – a long-range effort against Hearts at Tynecastle.
He has found his shooting boots since making the move down south, however, scoring seven goals and providing two more in 40 appearances this season, becoming a popular player at St Andrews.
Iwata has made four appearances for his country, with his last call-up occurring in 2022 for the Blue Samurai.
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