In a week, when Steve Bruce discovered that one of his employers doesn't like footballers and the other doesn't want to talk about his future, the last thing he needs is a trip to Manchester United.
David Sullivan and David Gold weren't full of the joys of spring after witnessing the heaviest home defeat in Birmingham City's history on Tuesday evening, with Liverpool romping to a 7-0 victory.
It was a new low in a miserable campaign and the ramifications are rumbling on. The treatment room is overflowing once again with Jamie Clapham and Martin Taylor the latest additions; both have groin problems.
Chris Sutton (calf) is once again unavailable to face the Old Trafford side, as are Muzzy Izzet, Matthew Upson, Nicky Butt and Medhi Nafti. DJ Campbell returns to the fold after being ineligible while Emile Heskey, Jiri Jarosik and Julian Gray should all make the cut as well.
Yet confidence is at an all-time low after their midweek capitulation and the speculation surrounding Bruce's future is having a detrimental effect.
However, there is still a chink of light inside a seem-ingly endless tunnel, as Blues are still only three points adrift of safety. The chances of Birmingham adding to their meagre points tally in the next two fixtures are slim, as they face United and Chelsea, the Premiership's top two teams and there is no more false bravado amongst the players.
Predictable rallying cries of 'we can win' have been replaced by a realisation that what has gone before hasn't been good enough.
"It's not good enough," admitted Stan Lazaridis last night. "We need to win games now and each week we keep losing.
"West Bromwich Albion are probably feeling that much better, so we've just got to keep going.
"You can't worry about Portsmouth. We know we've got to get four wins and perhaps a couple of draws and that's our target.
"Bearing in mind we've got Manchester United and Chelsea to come in our next two fixtures, that's going to be difficult. It is tough. It is hard on the fans and hard on anyone.
"If we can put up back-to-back wins at any stage over the next few weeks, it will be massive. It's just wins we want. You ask the fans what they want. They just want three points and it doesn't matter how it comes. We will go back to the drawing board and build on things again."
Lazaridis also admitted that the time for excuses regarding injuries was over. Birmingham have been plagued all season by a string of ailments yet the A ustralia international believes the squad should be producing more that is currently on offer.
"I'm not going to make excuses," he added bluntly. "We've made mistakes and we've got to score goals. It is as simple as that.
"The fans have been fantastic so far this season. You can't fault them. They are feeling the pressure and frustration. At times, they've had a little go at us and in some cases they are right to.
"We are big enough and strong enough and we've got to go again. If we manage to avoid relegation, then it is only going to be by the skin of our teeth.
"I know what people are saying regarding injuries but we've got a good enough squad now, so we shouldn't really always have to rely on Muzzy Izzet and David Dunn."
Team-mate Jamie Clapham was even more blunt in his assessment of their current plight. "You can't help but look at the table and think 'we're in the s***,' said Clapham.
"It is obviously a difficult situation. It's in our own hands, though, as we know Albion have got a difficult run-in and Portsmouth have caught people up again.
"There are three of us going for that one space at the moment unless we can drag others in."
