BREAKING NEWS: The Blues Transfer So Far Worth £3Million

Birmingham City will compete in the third tier for the first time since 1994/95 after being relegated from the Championship on the final day of the season despite a 1-0 win over play-off-bound Norwich City with a string of poor managerial decisions leading to the club’s demise. 

Their transfer business at this early stage of the summer transfer window indicates that Birmingham City intend to limit their spell in League One to just one season, with three major signings through the door at St. Andrews.

Issues on and off the field Lead to the Blues’ Decline.

Birmingham City have had a difficult time financially over the last decade which has led to regular changes in ownership. The most recent change came last summer when Knighthead Capital Management invested in the club and took control of all football operations intending to provide a stable foundation for the club, which had seen its decline nosedive since back-to-back tenth-place Championship finishes under Gary Rowett in 2014/15 and 2015/16.

Managers such as Harry Redknapp, Gianfranco Zola, Lee Carsley, Garry Monk, Aitor Karanka and Lee Bowyer just to name a few failed to provide an upturn in fortunes, with the Blues failing to finish higher than 17th in the seven seasons before this campaign’s relegation.

The decision to sack John Eustace despite sitting in the top six in October and replace the former Watford player with Manchester United and England legend Wayne Rooney was a disaster with Rooney managing just two wins in 15 matches to plunge the Blues back towards the relegation battle at the turn of the year.

Despite the best efforts of Tony Mowbray and Mark Venus and a run of 11 points from eight games under Gary Rowett, the club were relegated to the third tier with 50 points. However, the hierarchy has wasted no time in improving the squad ahead of what is a pivotal season in the history of Birmingham City Football Club.

Birmingham City Move Fast to Secure Goalkeepers

The club have seen several departures since the close of the 2023/24 season with number one goalkeeper John Ruddy joining Newcastle United and squad players such as Marc Roberts and Scott Hogan departing. Oliver Burke and Emanuel Aiwu have returned to their parent clubs after their loan deals expired.

Top scorer Jay Stansfield has returned to Fulham, after leading the line and scoring 12 Championship goals in a struggling side.

The signing of former Leeds goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell from Burnley for a fee reported around the £500,000 mark, is a shrewd signing. The 27-year-old is still Northern Ireland’s number one and is an excellent shot-stopper, most recently evidenced by his spell as number one at Sheffield Wednesday on loan in the 2021/22 campaign. He has struggled for game time at Burnley since the Clarets convinced Leeds to part with his services, but he is ready to become a key player in this Blues side as they target a swift return to the second tier.

32-year-old Ryan Allsop has extensive experience in the second and third tiers and will be a more than able deputy if Peacock-Farrell suffers a dip in form. The former Bournemouth and Cardiff City keeper has joined from Championship side Hull City on a free transfer.

Elite Forwards Additions Provide Firepower for Title Push

31-year-old Alfie May may turn out to be one of the signings of the summer. The former Charlton Athletic striker signed for Birmingham, despite interest from Huddersfield Town, for a fee in the range of £750,000. His 23-goal haul in the third tier was second to none and he ranked first for shots per game of all League One strikers with more than 20 appearances and second for key passes with the same criteria.

May will provide a predatory instinct in forward areas that will be sorely lacking due to Stansfield’s departure and his link-up with Siriki Dembele, Koji Miyoshi and new signing Emil Hansson has the potential to overpower many sides in League One next season.

Hansson has joined Birmingham City from Eredivisie side Heracles Almelo for a fee of £1.5 Million. This signing is a real statement of intent, and the former Sweden under-21 international is a goalscoring winger who is comfortable taking on full-backs, ranking first among Heracles players with 3.4 dribbles per game in the Eredivisie last season.

He scored five goals and provided a further six assists at a much higher level than League One, so this one appears to be a real coup for Chris Davies, who appears to have a side ready to take the third tier by storm next season. They look to be the early front-runners in a league that will contain potential title contenders in Huddersfield, Charlton, Bolton Wanderers and Peterborough United.