Fast forward a year and a half, and the hiring of Gary Rowett, whose sense of style is only bettered by his tactical nous, has caused the rebirth of Shinniesta at Birmingham. Playing in his favoured role, the number 10 role, Shinnie has been able to display the artistry and skill that gained him the nickname.
Where most number 10's are becoming more physical-orientated, be it quick or strong or a combination of both, Shinnie is neither. In fact, it's his pace which is his main weakness. Fortunately, his intelligence, spatial awareness and skill allow him to overcome these issues. Shinnie is a style of player which seemed to fade away 10/15 years ago - rather than Iniesta, he plays more like Riquelme.
What has been really striking is his ability to make defenders look completely and utterly stupid. Whilst he is most dangerous facing the opponents goal, his innovation is matched by his ability to pull off some very clever turns that leave defenders helpless. For a perfect example, check out the second goal in Birmingham's most recent game:
(Skip to 0:58)
Shinnie's turn took two defenders out of the game, his shot hitting the post leaving an easy chance for front man Donaldson.
His movement and intelligence are a big part of how he plays, and it has to be. Slower players have to know how and where to move to find space, and Shinnie is very clever at finding pockets of space. He has no qualms about moving wide to find space if the middle becomes too congested, which leaves oceans of space for inside-forward Demarai Gray to exploit. His movement not only creates space for him, but the players around him.
Shinnie has a deadly strike on him too, capable of scoring from range if given the chance. His scoring record is far from impressive at Birmingham, as he has been misused and even now is more of a creator than a finisher, but at Inverness he had an extremely impressive record.
So far, I've made Shinnie sound like Zidane, so it must be noted he does have his flaws. He struggles with tight man marking sometimes, though this can also backfire if the wingers move infield. His vision is not always matched by his passing ability and occasionally his low percentage passes don't come off and attacks break down. Shinnie works hard but his defensive capabilities aren't that of an Oscar or Rooney, but he does a job defensively.
Overall, Shinniesta has become an important player for the new look Birmingham, a counter-attacking side in the mould of Dortmund, Shinnie being the Enganche which the front 3 revolve around. He is a player who is not known very well, but he could quite easily become a hipster cult hero. Not just for his style, but his beard.
The Shinniesta revolution is here and Scotland have their own Riquelme - Andrew Shinnie.
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