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+----- Thread: Birmingham news (/showthread.php?tid=12346)
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 19-06-2024
Birmingham City have signed Ryan Allsop from Hull City on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.
The 32-year-old former England Under-17 goalkeeper becomes Blues' first summer signing following their relegation from the Championship to League One - and the first for new boss Chris Davies.
Former West Bromwich Albion trainee Allsop, a boyhood Blues fan, has made 367 career appearances with his 11 previous clubs.
"It feels like the right fit for me at the right time," he said. "Hopefully, I can help the club get back to where it belongs.
“I’m a boyhood Birmingham City fan and as soon as I knew there was interest, it was something that I wanted to explore. It is a club very close to my heart."
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 01-07-2024
Birmingham City have signed Northern Ireland goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell from Burnley for an undisclosed fee.
The 27-year-old spent last season on loan at Danish Superliga side AFG Aarhus, keeping 11 clean sheets in 28 appearances as they finished fifth.
He has won 46 caps for Northern Ireland and has signed a four-year deal with Birmingham, who were relegated to League One last season.
Peacock-Farrell becomes Birmingham's second summer arrival after they signed his fellow goalkeeper Ryan Allsop from Hull.
"It is a massive club with some huge ambitions for the coming years and to be a part of that is something that I had to come and do," Peacock-Farrell told Birmingham's website.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 03-07-2024
Birmingham City have completed the signing of Charlton Athletic striker Alfie May for an undisclosed fee.
May, 30, has signed a three-year contract at St Andrews.
The former Doncaster Rovers and Cheltenham Town player scored 27 goals in all competitions for the Addicks last season.
"It is a good project to be involved in. Speaking with the Manager [Chris Davies] and Craig [Gardner], the journey they want to go on as a Club - the club shouldn't be in League One," May told the Birmingham City website.
"It is exciting times, I want to hit the ground running... push on and, hopefully, get promoted."
The Blues were relegated from the Championship last season and will be hoping for an instant return to the second tier.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 06-07-2024
Birmingham City have signed winger Emil Hansson from Dutch club Heracles Almelo for an undisclosed fee.
The 26-year-old has agreed a three-year contract and is the fourth signing since last month's appointment of manager Chris Davies.
Born in Norway, Hansson has spent the last four years playing in the Netherlands, having joined Fortuna Sittard from Hannover in 2020.
He scored five goals in 24 appearances for Heracles last season in the top flight of Dutch football.
"I had a really good talk with Chris Davies and (coach) Craig Gardner. They told me about the plans this club has, especially for what we want to achieve next season - it was something I could not say no to," he told the club website.
Blues have previously brought in goalkeepers Ryan Allsop and Bailey Peacock-Farrell and striker Alfie May.
Following last season's relegation to League One, Birmingham start the new campaign with a home game against Reading.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 13-07-2024
Poland midfielder Krystian Bielik has signed a new three-year contract with League One side Birmingham City.
The 26-year-old, who began his career in England with Arsenal, first joined Blues on loan from the Gunners for the second half of the 2016-17 season.
After signing permanently from Derby County last summer, Bielik made 36 league appearances during a difficult campaign for the club that saw Birmingham relegated to the third tier for the first time in nearly 30 years.
Bielik, whose new deal runs until 2027, said a "good chat", external with new Blues boss Chris Davies convinced him to extend this time with Birmingham and said he "wants to get the club back to the Championship where they belong".
Birmingham start life in League One at home to Reading on Saturday, 10 August.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 16-07-2024
Birmingham City have made their fifth summer signing by completing the transfer of Alex Cochrane from Heart of Midlothian for an undisclosed seven-figure fee.
The 24-year-old former Brighton full-back has moved, subject to league, FA and international clearance, on a four-year contract.
"I just cannot wait to get going," Cochrane told BluesTV. "It came about quite quickly, but I felt like it was too good an opportunity to pass on.
"The ambition of the club is really exciting, especially for a young player like me who wants to go as far as I can in football."
Having joined Hearts originally on loan in 2021 from hometown club Brighton, Cochrane signed a more permanent deal 12 months later.
He made 96 top-flight appearances and was part of the team that reached the Scottish Cup Final in 2022 and also helped Hearts to finish third in the Scottish Premiership last season and qualify for the UEFA Europa League.
BBC Scotland reported earlier in the week that relegated Blues would pay a fee of around £1.3m, with add-ons, for Cochrane, who had entered the final year of his contract at Tynecastle Park.
Hearts head coach Steven Naismith was expecting to lose him after having to leave him out of last Saturday's 2-1 friendly defeat by Leyton Orient.
Cochrane follows new Blues boss Chris Davies's earlier signings of goalkeepers Ryan Allsop and Bailey Peacock-Farrell, striker Alfie May and Norwegian winger Emil Hansson.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 21-07-2024
Birmingham City have signed Iceland midfielder Willum Thor Willumsson on a four-year deal from Go Ahead Eagles for an undisclosed fee.
The 25-year-old scored 15 goals and provided six assists in 62 appearances in his two seasons with the Deventer-based side, and helped them secure a top half finish in the Dutch top flight last term.
Willumsson, who has earned nine caps for Iceland, began his career with Breidablik in his home country and moved on to play for Bate Borisov in Belarus before joining Go Ahead Eagles in the summer of 2022.
"When I heard that there was interest from Birmingham, I thought to myself 'Yeah, this is the time, this is the next step'," Willumsson told the club website., external
"England is like the Mecca of football, it was always a dream for me to play he said
He joins a Blues side that will be embarking on the club's first season in England's third tier for 29 years.
Their League One campaign will start with a home game against Reading on Saturday, 10 August.
Birmingham City have made their seventh summer signing by bringing in centre-back Christoph Klarer from German Bundeliga 2 side Darmstadt for an undisclosed fee.
The 24-year-old Austrian, who spent four years in Southampton’s academy, has signed a three-year contract.
His arrival follows those of goalkeepers Ryan Allsop and Bailey Peacock-Farrell, striker Alfie May, winger Emil Hansson, full-back Alex Cochrane and midfielder Willum Thor Willumsson.
Relegated Blues are now managed by former Celtic, Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur number two Chris Davies and start the new League One season with a home game against Reading on Saturday, 10 August.
After going down on the final day in May, following a nightmare campaign of six different men in charge, this will be their first season back in England's third tier in 30 years.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 25-07-2024
Birmingham City have signed Brighton midfielder Marc Leonard for an undisclosed fee to complete an eighth summer signing for new boss Chris Davies.
The 22-year-old Scot, who began his professional career at Heart of Midlothian, has spent the last two seasons on loan at Northampton Town.
He has signed a four-year contract, subject to clearance from the EFL and FA.
"I felt like the time was right," Leonard told BluesTV.
"And I knew that Blues was the club that I wanted to play for so I really pushed for the deal to go through.
"Based on where I am in my career and where Birmingham are trying to get to, I just felt like the ambition of this club really matched my own."
American-owned Blues, who had almost 20,000 at St Andrew's to watch them beat Rangers 2-1 in a pre-season friendly - the Trevor Francis Memorial Match - on Tuesday night, have set pulses racing in the Midlands with their spending this summer.
Although speculation remains that highly-rated Wales Under-21 international Jordan James may move on, having been strongly linked with both Atalanta and Fiorentina earlier this summer, Blues have now bought eight players.
Leonard follows the weekend arrival of fellow midfielder Willum Willumsson from Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles and Austrian centre-back Christoph Klarer from German Bundesliga 2 side Darmstadt - both for substantial seven-figure fees.
Blues also paid a seven-figure sum for Hearts full-back Alex Cochrane, as well as undisclosed fees for winger Emil Hansson and Charlton Athletic striker Alfie May.
And they have offset the loss of veteran John Ruddy to Newcastle United by signing two goalkeepers - Ryan Allsop from Hull City and Bailey Peacock-Farrell from Burnley.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 02-08-2024
Croatian midfielder Ivan Sunjic has joined Cypriot top-flight club Pafos on a free transfer following his release by Birmingham City.
The 27-year-old made 173 appearances for Blues after joining them from Dinamo Zagreb in 2019 for a reported £6.3m.
Sunjic played 40 games last season, with his only goal of the campaign coming in a 3-0 win over Coventry City.
He was among five players not offered new deals in the wake of Birmingham's relegation to League One.
RE: Birmingham news - themaclad - 05-08-2024
League One side Birmingham City have signed teenage Fulham midfielder Luke Harris on a season-long loan.
The Jersey-born 19-year-old Wales Under-21 international has made seven first-team appearances for the Cottagers.
He spent the second half of last season on loan at another League One club, Exeter City, scoring four goals in 21 matches for the Grecians.
"It is, obviously, a massive club, I can't wait to get going," Harris told the club website., external
Harris' arrival marks the second successive season Blues have brought a Fulham youngster in on loan, 13-goal Jay Stansfield finishing as their top scorer last term.
Birmingham were relegated from the Championship on the final day of the season and new boss Chris Davies has already set about re-shaping the squad, with Harris his ninth summer signing.