Five players set to leave Birmingham City this summer – including ‘vital’ £3.5m duo
There are already five players scheduled to depart Birmingham City during the summer transfer window.
Following an unprecedented League One title campaign, Birmingham City is getting ready to compete in the Championship, setting the stage for another significant summer.
As they aim to go closer to their ultimate goal of being promoted to the Premier League, Chris Davies and his team will be hungry to dominate the English second division. Even if it sounds strange after such a wonderful season, Davies wants to fill gaps in what may become his Championship dream team, therefore additional investment is probably needed to achieve that.
However, there are important choices to be made regarding individuals that might depart, so it’s not just about the new players. For example, a number of first-team players are scheduled to leave when their contracts expire on June 30. Meanwhile, a number of loanees are expected to return to their parent clubs unless the Blues make an attempt to sign them on a permanent basis.
Five players on track to leave Birmingham City
The pair in question are defence combo Grant Hanley and Lee Myung-jae, both of whom were signed in January on six-month deals. Myung-jae, a South Korea international, has only made two appearances, whereas Hanley has played 16 games but just three starts.
Though it’s more likely that they’ll go on, the Blues may choose to start negotiations with Hanley and Myung-jae in an attempt to keep them at the club. They might be helpful because Birmingham will want a deep team for the Championship, but there will be other options already on the shortlist.
Then there are Kieran Dowell, Ben Davies, and Luke Harris, who are all on loan. The three will all leave on July 1 and won’t be back unless the Blues decide to move further with trying to extend their loans or buy them outright. Due to a purchase commitment, Alfons Sampsted, another loanee, is already joining.
Since the Fulham player has spent the majority of the season playing a utility role, logging 1,504 minutes in 35 appearances, Harris is the least likely to return to Birmingham. It’s unlikely that the 20-year-old will move up the divisions with the Blues, but he hasn’t been a horrible acquisition either.
Unlike Harris, Dowell and Davies, who are valued at about £3.5 million apiece, have a good chance of staying. Since signing from Rangers in January, Dowell, who is frequently utilised as an attacking midfielder or slightly off the right flank, has made 22 appearances and provided five goals and five assists. Davies, who is also from Rangers, has played in 44 games since the summer and has been a regular in the central defence with Christoph Klarer.
Birmingham World is aware that the Blues have talked about Dowell and Davies as possible long-term acquisitions. It might be rather easy to get a contract for both of them because they are Rangers players and the Scottish Premiership team wasn’t really interested in keeping them when they leased them out.