£500k Birmingham City midfielder drops update on his future | OneFootball

Marc Leonard has been quizzed about a potential permanent move to Tynecastle Park

Birmingham City's rebuilding job under Knighthead Capital Management has led to high amounts of player turnover at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park within the past two years, and that could certainly be the case once again this summer.

With the club's American owners desperate for short and long-term success, manager Chris Davies has been continuously backed in the four transfer windows which he has overseen since his appointment back in June 2024.

During that time, Blues have smashed their transfer record through the permanent acquisition of Jay Stansfield from Fulham, and have since continued to splash the cash on several other high-profile names, especially in attacking areas, to give themselves a desired advantage over divisional rivals in their bid of returning to the Premier League.

Despite being fancied for a play-off position before the current Championship campaign got off and running, Birmingham have, in some ways, flattered to deceive.

14 new players were acquired in the summer, followed by another six in January as Blues' squad underwent a major transformation at the turn of the year, bidding farewell to several players on the fringes of Davies' starting lineup.

One of the men who certainly fell into said category was Scottish all-action midfielder, Marc Leonard, who is now in the midst of a successful loan spell with one of his previous clubs and SPFL leaders, Hearts.

And, with the summer window looming large, the 24-year-old has revealed where his head is currently at regarding transfer talk.

Marc Leonard has 'no idea' on potential permanent Hearts, Birmingham City move

Since returning to Tynecastle Park in January to replace the injured Cammy Devlin within Derek McInnes' starting lineup, Leonard has contributed to four wins in his first eight appearances, as well as scoring in the 4-2 defeat to Rangers at Ibrox on February 15th.

Despite being back with the Edinburgh club for less than two months, the midfielder has already made more starts for Hearts this term than he had managed for Blues in the Championship and EFL Cup in the first half of the season.

A lack of starts has been a running theme of Leonard's time with Blues ever since his £500k switch from Brighton and Hove Albion in the summer of 2024.

The youth international constantly struggled to oust Paik Seung-ho and Tomoki Iwata from the starting XI in League One, and his chances of regular minutes this term were only jeopardised further when Tommy Doyle moved on loan from Wolves in July, before Jhon Solis also agreed a temporary switch from Girona FC in January.

However, Leonard has since been described as a 'godsend' amid talks that Hearts would like to strike a permanent agreement with Blues, although his wage demands could cause a stumbling block.

When asked about a potential permanent move being sewn up, Leonard told the Edinburgh Evening News: "No idea. Look, at the moment, you’ll get this answer everywhere: I’ve got a few years left at Birmingham, and that’s my focus, so I’ll stick with that.”

Leonard is currently under contract with Blues until June 2028, meaning he has two years left to run on his contract this summer.

Marc Leonard would still benefit from Birmingham City exit despite fresh transfer stance

Despite a frustrating period in B9, several clubs have remained well-aware of Leonard's ability, which could create a bidding war in the summer.

He was linked with a potential move to Huddersfield Town in the summer, which never materialised, before it was claimed that Sheffield United and Norwich City had expressed an interest in the Scot ahead of his temporary switch north of the border.

His lack of minutes with Blues have generated plenty of discourse over time. But, it would be fair to say that a permanent St. Andrew's exit could serve his overall career better, rather than returning to a substitutes' role.