Birmingham City can officially start signing players today with the transfer window now open. The club might be without a Director of Football, but the transfer wheels are still in motion ahead of the players’ return to pre-season later this month.
Active Without Gardner
Their attempt to bring Jhon Solis back to St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park on a permanent basis is evidence that Blues are still active in the market without Craig Gardner. In Chris Davies they have a manager who knows what he wants from this summer’s window. Blues still have the recruitment team that Gardner built out, which includes head of recruitment Joe Carnall, recruitment data expert Steven Spencer, and popular former striker Lukas Jutkiewicz among others.
Admittedly, not having a Director of Football isn’t ideal. You would want the figurehead of the football side of the business to have a say on recruitment, but the work for this particular window should long since have been done. If a new chief was to come in now and impose their ideas on recruitment without prior, detailed preparation, you would be concerned that the club’s transfer dealings were being rushed. It is never right to rush in a transfer window because that is when mistakes are made.
Davies Gains More Power
Whichever way you look at it, Gardner’s departure gives Davies more power at the transfer table until a replacement is appointed. Some will say that’s the way it should be and, to a certain extent, it is – but the data-driven model that Blues are trying to use doesn’t lend itself to the first team manager making overarching decisions on every single aspect. Managers are as interchangeable as players in many ways and going into a transfer window without a Director of Football has created a vacuum that only one person is likely to fill.
Davies' Wish List
Bringing back loanees Solis and Ibrahim Osman is at the top of Davies’ wish-list. Signing Solis, a 21-year-old midfielder with room to develop who has already proven himself in the Championship, is a sensible move. The formalities are still to be completed but re-signing Solis means Blues don’t have to find and bed in a replacement. Osman is a more difficult transfer to negotiate. With no option to buy, Blues are at the mercy of Brighton & Hove Albion. The departure of Gardner, who had good relations with Brighton and Osman, could be felt here.
If Blues can re-sign Solis and Osman, Davies has estimated another six through the door during the summer window. A goalkeeper, at least one centre-back – possibly two depending if any clubs come in for Jack Robinson – a midfielder to replace Tommy Doyle and two new forwards are on the club’s agenda. The signing of a striker is also high up the Blues manager’s list of priorities to provide more competition to August Priske and Jay Stansfield. This player would effectively replace Kyogo Furuhashi who has slid down the pecking order under Davies.
Ducksch's Future Uncertain
Marvin Ducksch’s future is also up in the air. The German didn’t feature much at the back-end of last season after a drink-driving misdemeanour and rumours are rife about a move away from St Andrew’s. Blues aren’t likely to stand in Ducksch’s way if a suitable offer comes in with Davies now of the opinion that the profile of Priske – a mobile target man – is the best bet in the Championship.
Knighthead's Vision
It is worth mentioning that Knighthead are keen for Blues to recruit younger players who can be developed and traded for profit in the future, but everyone inside the building is also mindful that the team looked light on Championship experience last season. We can expect a blend of signings this summer but, as ever, the most important thing is that Blues get the recipe right. Now that they officially have permission to start trading, there’s no time to waste.
