All the focus at Birmingham City this summer has been directed towards the host of impressive and ambitious transfer captures made by the club in order to clinch promotion from League One as soon as possible.
From last season’s third tier top goalscorer Alfie May and highly-rated midfielder Marc Leonard to Willum Willumson and Emil Hansson – both poached from the Eredivisie – Birmingham’s recruitment has spread itself far and wide, with the club exerting a degree of ambition and pulling power within their activity perhaps never seen before in the third-tier of English football.
It’s only right that their incomings are of such focus, but it’s worth remembering that Birmingham do have a batch of talented, young upcoming prospects emerging from the ranks – and some could well net the club some serious cash in the years to come.
With that in mind, Football League World has decided to cherry-pick and run the rule over the Blues’ three most promising young players.
By far the most experienced of the three options listed here, George Hall’s rich potential remains firmly intact at the age of 20 despite encountering injury setbacks in the previous campaign.
The creative midfielder made 30 appearances for his boyhood club in the 2022/23 term – 13 of which were starts, opening his professional account against Watford and eventually being named as Birmingham’s Young Player of the Season.
All the focus at Birmingham City this summer has been directed towards the host of impressive and ambitious transfer captures made by the club in order to clinch promotion from League One as soon as possible.
From last season’s third tier top goalscorer Alfie May and highly-rated midfielder Marc Leonard to Willum Willumson and Emil Hansson – both poached from the Eredivisie – Birmingham’s recruitment has spread itself far and wide, with the club exerting a degree of ambition and pulling power within their activity perhaps never seen before in the third-tier of English football.
It’s only right that their incomings are of such focus, but it’s worth remembering that Birmingham do have a batch of talented, young upcoming prospects emerging from the ranks – and some could well net the club some serious cash in the years to come.
With that in mind, Football League World has decided to cherry-pick and run the rule over the Blues’ three most promising young players.
George Hall
By far the most experienced of the three options listed here, George Hall’s rich potential remains firmly intact at the age of 20 despite encountering injury setbacks in the previous campaign.
The creative midfielder made 30 appearances for his boyhood club in the 2022/23 term – 13 of which were starts, opening his professional account against Watford and eventually being named as Birmingham’s Young Player of the Season.
| George Hall’s 2022/23 stats for Birmingham City, as per FotMob | |
| Appearances | 30 |
| Goals | 2 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Chances created per 90 minutes | 0.64 |
| Successful dribbles per 90 minutes | 1.36 |
An England international at age-group level, Hall possesses impressive pedigree and plenty of talent. He reportedly rejected interest from Premier League quartet Everton, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, and West Ham United twelve months ago to pen a fresh three-year contract with Blues, which could pay dividends in the long run if he can unlock his potential.
Competition for places in Chris Davies’ side will be intense this season but Hall could prove himself in League One and become the next midfield prodigy to be produced and sold on by the club for a significant fee like Jude Bellingham and Jordan James before him.
Romelle Donovan
Three years Hall’s junior, 17-year-old forward Romelle Donovan also appears to be a real talent in the making.
He showed glimpses of what the future could hold during his seven appearances for Birmingham at first-team level last term, while his trickery, invention, and speed have all caught the eye of ardent followers of the club’s vaunted youth set-up.
Just when he gets given the opportunity to consistently translate those attributes into the senior game remains to be seen and it may turn out that a loan move elsewhere is required to begin with but he’s undoubtedly a precocious talent who the club can really benefit from in the future
Last but not least, it’s not an academy product making the cut this time – rather one of this summer’s many recruits.
Ayumu Yokoyama, who is most at home as a left-winger, was signed from Japanese top-flight outfit Sagan Tosu. While at Tosu in the 2024 season, Yokoyama recorded five strikes from 13 starts in divisional action, equating to 0.35 goals per 90 minutes played.
That’s an impressive return alone and Yokoyama is also a dynamic and skilled dribbler who can beat opponents at will – and Blues supporters may have some fun watching him in action.
It certainly feels like a long-term investment but you do feel he’ll receive opportunities in League One, where the 21-year-old could begin to thrive en route to netting Blues a real profit further down the line.
