Robbie Fowler emerged a hero at last by flicking home 10-man Manchester City's second-half winner at Maine Road on Sunday.

With no goals from four games since his £6million arrival from Leeds, some City supporters were beginning to lose patience with the former England man, especially when he spurned an excellent chance to break the deadlock five minutes into the second half.

But manager Kevin Keegan promised his star buy would come good and in Roy of the Rovers fashion, he did, minutes after his manager had arrived at the dug-out from his seat in the directors' box.

Ali Benarbia was the creator, floating a cross into the Birmingham danger zone after smuggling possession out of a midfield scrap.

Fowler sensed his chance, drifted in front of Damien Johnson and clipped a left-footed shot beyond the excellent Ian Bennett.

It proved enough to settle a dour game, which erupted into life late on following the dismissal of Niclas Jensen, with Nicolas Anelka wasting his second one-on-one with Bennett before Geoff Horsfield comically blew a late chance to level.

To say the opening 15 minutes were poor would be about as understated as saying Alan Shearer might be worth a look as a potential England striker.

With Birmingham content to allow the game to develop into the kind of midfield scrap in which they excel, Kevin Keegan's more artistic troops struggled to impose themselves.

Kevin Horlock was the most effective home player on view and that was only because of his aggressive contribution, which at least ensured Savage and company didn't steamroller their way over the City midfield.

The Northern Ireland international also forced visitors keeper Ian Bennett into his best save of the opening period, with an instant half-volley which the Birmingham stopper palmed away.

Either side of that effort though, the Maine Road outfit spurned two glorious chances to take the lead.

Marc-Vivien Foe's City future is in doubt after Keegan revealed the club's option on the Cameroon international would force them to fork out an imposing £7million to take the Lyon midfielder on a permanent basis.

Foe wants to stay and Keegan has suggested he may try to renegotiate the fee, although his woeful effort at trying to turn home a Nicolas Anelka cut-back after Bennett had initially saved the Frenchman's angled shot won't have done much to persuade the former England coach that he is worth persevering with.

Unmarked and only eight yards out, Foe succeeded only in scuffing the ball against his standing leg and the ball trickled away to safety.

It was Anelka's turn to blunder on the half-hour when he ran onto Kenny Cunningham's under-hit back-header, still managed to beat Bennett to the loose ball despite a first touch which was far too strong but then tumbled in the area under minimal, if any, contact.

The sporadic bursts of action at least generated some atmosphere, as did Savage's reaction to a yellow card for taking a free-kick too quickly, the Welshman's 10th caution of a campaign which will now be disrupted by a two-match ban.

Fowler's first chance came five minutes after the re-start, when Savage gifted Anelka possession just inside the Birmingham half.

Watching it all unfold in frustration from his seat in a half-empty City directors' box, lacking a chairman and managing director from their previous home game, Keegan decided it was time to move.

His arrival on the touchline coincided with a decent Wright-Phillips burst but it took another five minutes for Keegan's magic spell to take effect as Fowler finally broke his duck.

Ironically, it was to prove the striker's last contribution as he made way for the arrival of Sun Jihai, a decision which was forced on the City manager by the dismissal of Niclas Jensen for two bookable offences 11 minutes from time.

The numerical advantage only encouraged the visitors to push forward, giving City room which had not existed previously. Anelka will spend long evenings wondering how he did not take advantage when he broke clear from halfway only to be outsmarted by Bennett again.

But the pain would have been so much greater had substitute Geoff Horsfield not contrive to blow a golden chance to equalise in the final minute when the slightest touch with his standing leg denied him a shot at an empty City goal after he had rounded Peter Schmeichel.

The unfortunate striker swished at fresh air and fell on his face as the ball trickled away. Fowler's goal apart it typified the game.

Teams:

Man City: Schmeichel, Sommeil, Wiekens, Distin, Wright-Phillips, Benarbia, Foe, Horlock, Jensen, Fowler (Jihai 80), Anelka.

Subs Not Used: Nash, Belmadi, Dunne, Goater.

Sent Off: Jensen (79).

Booked: Jensen, Wiekens.

Goals: Fowler 72.

Birmingham: Bennett, Kenna (Devlin 74), Upson, Cunningham, Clapham, Damien Johnson (John 84), Savage, Clemence, Lazaridis, Morrison (Horsfield 59), Dugarry.

Subs Not Used: Marriott, Carter.

Booked: Savage.

Att: 34,596

Ref: M Messias (N Yorkshire).