Journalist Mike McGrath reports Birmingham City have submitted a bid for a “very interesting” attacking player, with a rival Championship club also in the mix to sign him.
Davies delighted ahead of Birmingham’s next test
The Blues have made a positive start to the season, drawing 1-1 at home to Ipswich Town in their league opener last week, largely outplaying last year’s Premier League side. Birmingham then knocked Sheffield United out of the EFL Cup on Wednesday evening, winning 2-1, and manager Chris Davies was delighted with what he saw from his players.
“There was some excellent football, really fluid, we moved the ball well and gave them a problem either through our possession play or through our pressing – and we should have been out of sight.
“You saw that last season, when it’s 1-0 there’s always a chance, but they didn’t create chances, they didn’t have those moments, but what they did have was a goal that shouldn’t have been a goal. But I thought the reaction was fantastic.
“What you can do is control what you can do, which is your performance, and we reacted really well and got the goal. We know what it’s like, it’s going to be really hard this season. Sheffield United were in the play-off final last year, we are talking about a team that was twenty minutes away from the Premier League. To beat a team like that is a big, big test. A big challenge, and we did it tonight.”
Next up for Birmingham is a trip to Blackburn Rovers in the Championship on Saturday afternoon, with potential new signings being looked at away from on-pitch matters.
Birmingham make offer for international attacker
According to McGrath on X, Birmingham have submitted an offer for £5m-rated Queens Park Rangers attacker Koki Saito, with Derby County also interested in signing him.
Saito could be exactly what Birmingham are after this summer, with the three-cap Japan international adding extra depth and quality in the final, having proven himself in the Championship.
The 24-year-old is a versatile player, invariably taking up a left-sided role but also being able to shine as a centre forward, and scout Jacek Kulig has described him as a “very interesting” player in the past.
The lure of Birmingham is hopefully greater than the other clubs linked with signing Saito, with the club in an exciting period in their history, and the QPR man can help take them in the right direction.