Birmingham City & Coventry City face new threat in race to sign £40k-a-week Brentford star | OneFootball

Frank Onyeka has emerged as a loan option for the two Championship sides

Birmingham City and Coventry City are reportedly facing competition from Spanish La Liga side, Valencia CF, in their respective pursuits of taking Brentford's powerful midfielder, Frank Onyeka, away from the Gtech Community Stadium on a loan basis.

That is according to Lyall Thomas of Sky Sports via X, with an update emerging late on Thursday, as the under-fire former West Bromwich Albion boss, Carlos Corberan, looks to improve his squad at the Mestalla.

The current winter transfer window provides both Blues and Coventry with an opportunity to make the required changes to their respective squads too, with both West Midlands sides harbouring strong ambitions between now and the end of the regular Championship season on May 2nd.

Ironically, it was Chris Davies' side who continued to pile on the recent frustrations for Frank Lampard's league leading Sky Blues in the most recent weekend of Championship action, with the Second City side emerging 3-2 victors in a pulsating early kick-off at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park on January 4th.

Both sides endured differing fortunes in the FA Cup last weekend too, with Birmingham winning again by the same scoreline against Cambridge United, whilst the 2023/24 semi-finalists suffered a 1-0 defeat at Stoke City.

However, the two clubs have been heavily linked with several potential reinforcements in the middle of the park since, with it being claimed in the lead-up to the current window that this particular department was one of three areas identified by Davies and his recruitment team that required alterations.

Birmingham City and Coventry City face Valencia battle in loan swoop for Brentford's Frank Onyeka

Onyeka is fast-approaching his five-year anniversary with Brentford, having initially been acquired by former Bees and current Tottenham Hotspur boss, Thomas Frank, from Danish Superliga outfit, FC Midtjylland, on a five-year contract in the summer of 2021 following the club's promotion to the Premier League.

Despite initially becoming a midfield lynchpin for the West London club as they initially consolidated their position in the top flight, the 28-year-old has seen his gametime significantly reduced at the Gtech over time, and such a fate has shown no signs of changing under current head coach, Keith Andrews.

Onyeka has made just 87 overall appearances for the Reds in his four-and-a-half years with the club thus far, scoring just the once and providing a further six assists.

Such numbers will not come as the biggest of surprises, though, as he adopted the nickname 'tank' for his combative and physical performances at the base of midfield.

However, after spending last season on loan with German Bundesliga side, FC Augsburg, where he made 34 appearances and provided two assists, the 41-time Nigerian international could be set for another temporary stint away from the side who are currently fifth in the Premier League after a recent run of four wins and one draw in their past five outings.

The Daily Mail first reported on Thursday that Coventry had identified Onyeka as a potential target during the transfer window, and that they hope he can be persuaded to drop into the Championship for the first time in his career on a loan basis.

However, the same publication claimed that Blues, whose American investment - which includes legendary NFL quarterback, Tom Brady - are also hoping to lure Onyeka to the Midlands.

But, in a fresh turn of events, the two second tier sides now face competition from Valencia, with the Spanish side making an official approach for the midfielder's services, whilst Birmingham and Coventry's interest was backed up.

Whilst the ESTIMATED £40,000 per week earner has only made nine appearances for Brentford this season, he was one of several impressive figures as the Super Eagles progressed all the way to the semi-finals of the African Cup of Nations, before suffering penalty-shootout heartbreak against Morocco on Wednesday night.

Onyeka started in four of those outings alongside the likes of Blues full-back, Bright Osayi-Samuel. However, neither will be returning to England for their club's upcoming fixtures, as they face Egypt in a third/fourth-place play-off on Saturday afternoon.

It now also remains to be seen if either Birmingham or Coventry can use their ambitions to be successful in this transfer race, with Valencia currently inside the La Liga relegation zone, despite their well-known recent stature in European football.