Phil Neumann transfer: Birmingham City break silence after Hannover 96 update
Absolute clarity on Phil Neumann hasn’t yet arrived with under three weeks of the transfer window remaining – but the German is expected to become a Birmingham City player at some stage.
Neumann’s contract at Hannover 96 expires in June and the 27-year-old can sign a pre-contract agreement with Blues this month. As things stand, that looks the likeliest bet with Hannover seemingly keen to keep hold of their star defender to aid their bid for promotion to the Bundesliga.
The Bundesliga II side have just sacked manager Stefan Leitl and replaced him with André Breitenreiter. Breitenreiter – who briefly managed Blues’ League One rivals last season – has been tasked with winning promotion and Neumann is undoubtedly a key component of his team.
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A sizeable offer during the January transfer window could change matters but, equally, given how well stocked Chris Davies’ defence is, Blues can wait for Neumann. Speaking earlier this week, Hannover 96 sporting director Marcus Mann told BILD: “All I can say about the winter is that no one has contacted me yet.”
What has Neumann said?
It’s quite clear that playing in England is a goal of Neumann’s. Blues tried to sign Neumann during the summer window but Hannover stood firm and rejected all bids for their star centre-back.
"Playing in England was always my goal," Neumann told the Neu Presse. "When you have a family, you naturally look further into the future and of course, contract negotiations also involve financial aspects, but it's about much more than that - in the end, it's a total package. Accordingly, I wouldn't go to Saudi Arabia because that's where the most money is. I do have the ambition to get the best possible results in football as well."
What has Davies said?
Davies turned down the chance to provide clarity on Blues’ bid for Neumann at his press conference this week. Whilst the Blues manager confirmed the club’s interest in Neumann, he wouldn’t go into more detail due to the transfer having not yet been formalised.
“There’s not really an update on that,” said Davies. “Obviously I know the player, he’s a good player, but there’s nothing I can give that can provide any real clarity on that.
“We are looking at multiple options to see what’s out there, as most teams do at this time of year, but there’s nothing we can go into any detail on at the moment.”
What does it mean for Blues’ existing defenders?
With Dion Sanderson out the door until the summer at least, there is a vacancy in Blues' back-line that needs to be filled now. Davies confirmed after the win over Lincoln that he wants to sign a new centre-back this month. In an ideal world, Blues would sign Neumann this month in a cut-price deal and bed him in during the second half of the season.
Signing Neumann in the summer would also raise a question over whether Blues could sign Ben Davies on a permanent basis. The on-loan Rangers man has been superb for Blues this season but his deal doesn’t include an option-to-buy and football wouldn’t be guaranteed next season with Neumann, Krystian Bielik and Christoph Klarer in the building.
