Birmingham City’s dream January as Neumann replaces Sanderson and wildcard arrives
Chris Davies expects a ‘quiet window’ in January for Birmingham City after every item on his wish-list was acquired in the summer.
Blues signed 17 new players for Davies and kept the likes of Krystian Bielik, Ethan Laird, Lee Buchanan, Paik Seung-ho and Keshi Anderson to build a squad most Championship clubs would be envious of, let alone their League One rivals.
There aren’t any holes that need filling in Davies’ squad this winter but some could be created. A departure or two is expected and Blues’ manager will insist on replacing those who leave to maintain squad depth.
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He said: “The squad so far has managed the season well and it will get tested even more but I certainly wouldn’t want to lose (numbers) from the playing squad.”
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The obvious candidate to leave is Dion Sanderson. The club’s former captain has barely played this season and hasn’t even been a fixture in Davies’ 18-man squad for League One matches.
A player of 25, with 104 Championship appearances to his name, shouldn’t want to spend a season on the fringes of a League One squad. A parting of ways, be it a loan or permanent transfer, makes sense for both parties.
Sources at Blues have indicated that plans for the next two transfer windows are already in place. Blues have a list of targets they will move for in the event that someone leaves this winter.
It would be wise to assume that the German defender Phil Neumann features high on their list of replacements for Sanderson. Neumann was on Blues’ radar in the summer but Hannover 96 didn’t entertain selling their star defender.
The 27-year-old has been one of the stand-out centre-backs in Bundesliga II in the past three seasons and would be a coup signing for Blues, particularly while the club is still in League One. Neumann is out-of-contract at Hannover in the summer and Blues could move in January before a scramble for a free transfer ensues.
The rest of the Blues squad is absolutely stacked but there is always room for a wildcard signing. A speedy wide player would give Davies an option in a department where there are still question marks over whether any of the four incumbents have the ability to help Blues compete at the top-end of the Championship.
Nathan Redmond would be the absolute dream signing for many Bluenoses. The Birmingham-born winger hasn’t played for Burnley this season and only has six months remaining on his contract. Still only 30, Redmond has a lot to offer below the Premier League and a return to the club where it all started would give his career a romantic finale.
Finally, the depth of Davies’ squad has caused issues for a few players who we thought might feature more prominently at the outset. Brandon Khela has been a useful squad player for Davies but he hasn’t played many minutes and would benefit from a loan move. Likewise Alfie Chang, who has now returned to fitness after a long injury lay-off.
