Blackburn Rovers initiate Birmingham City transfer talks – “strong possibility” in January revealed

Blackburn Rovers start transfer negotiations with Birmingham City; a “strong possibility” was disclosed in January.

According to a report from Birmingham Live, when the 23-year-old temporarily moved from St. Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park to Ewood Park on Deadline Day in the summer transfer window, certain clauses were agreed upon between the two Championship clubs. Even though the two teams were separated by a division the previous season, the Blues have had a stronger start to the current campaign. As we approach the important Christmas and New Year season, the winter transfer window will open for business in less than a month.

Chris Davies’ team has won five of their last seven games, four of which have been at St. Andrew’s, where they have scored 14 goals against Portsmouth, Millwall, Norwich City, and most recently, Watford. This is a significant improvement from the team’s poor performance in the autumn. Rovers, on the other hand, have recently been lamenting their fate. Following a convincing 2-1 victory over Preston North End, Valerien Ismael’s team drew 1-1 with Wrexham and Ipswich Town in back-to-back games. The Red Dragons and Tractor Boys both equalised at the very end, and the latter added even more injustice after the match was rescheduled, as was widely reported.

Gardner-Hickman has already established himself as a staple in Ismael’s team after rejoining with the Frenchman following a previous stint as colleagues at West Bromwich Albion, despite the fact that the two teams are now ten spots and seven points apart in the standings. The former Baggies manager’s desire to prolong his second stint with the Telford native may therefore not be shocking. After Bristol City was demoted to League One for the first time in thirty years, Gardner-Hickman first joined the West Midlands team on loan. He has only been at Birmingham for a year.

Following a slow start in terms of regular minutes, Davies’ versatility would soon prove to be a valuable asset as the Blues went on to play in 60 games across all competitions, making it far into the FA Cup and reaching the EFL Trophy final on top of their third-tier record of 111 points. Before his transfer from Ashton Gate was made permanent for an estimated £1.5 million till June 2028, the natural midfielder would play a variety of positions, including right-back and left-wing, scoring three goals and dishing out two assists in 43 games.

However, Gardner-Hickman was another player who would succumb to the quick changes taking place at St. Andrew’s, joining Blackburn with hours remaining in the window after playing just 91 minutes of competitive action during the campaign’s first month, as the Blues conducted yet another intense summer recruitment drive and were already saying goodbye to important players from the previous season, like Alfie May. The former England Under-20 international, who has started 12 of his first 13 games for the East Lancashire team since reuniting with Ismael, has undoubtedly taken over one of Rovers’ midfield berths.

As a result, Birmingham Live has stated that Blackburn has started negotiations with the Second City team on the potential for a long-term contract, with an option-to-buy clause included in the loan agreement between the divisional rivals. According to the source, there is even a good chance that these events will occur during the next transfer window rather than at the end of the current campaign. If Blackburn is to conclude an agreement in January rather than waiting until the summer, it will undoubtedly satisfy them given the various elements involved in this deal.

Given that Bright Osayi-Samuel will soon play for Nigeria at the African Cup of Nations and Ethan Laird is out until February due to a hamstring injury, some may have questioned whether a recall was imminent for Birmingham given his prior experience at right-back. But when natural full-back Alfons Sampsted replaced Osayi-Samuel as a substitute in the Blues’ 2-1 victory over Watford on Monday night, such speculation was all but silenced. Gardner-Hickman has just under three years remaining on his Birmingham deal, so it is also unclear what fee will be agreed upon.

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