6 players will exit Birmingham City in 2026 if nothing changes ft. Keshi Anderson | OneFootball

FLW looks at those currently out-of-contract at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park next summer

Birmingham City have been one of several Championship sides making headlines for various reasons across the opening months of the season.

After breaking all kinds of records in League One last season, many expected Blues to continue their upward trajectory and compete for potential back-to-back promotions under Chris Davies.

Such beliefs only intensified during yet another high-profile recruitment drive at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park in the summer, which was fronted by the £10m capture of Japanese international striker, Kyogo Furuhashi, who joined from Rennes.

After an initial slow return to the second-tier, during which speculation over Davies' immediate future came to the fore amid continued backing from Knighthead Capital Management, the West Midlands side have started to find their winning rhythm once again in recent weeks, and are scoring plenty of goals in the process.

A handful of players have certainly stepped up to the mark of late too, giving Davies plenty of selection headaches. However, another dilemma which will soon come for the 40-year-old involves the potential actions he will take when it comes to those whose futures at the club are currently up for debate.

There are six of those at present, and Football League World has looked at each one of their individual predicaments.

Keshi Anderson

At the minute, Keshi Anderson remains the only permanently contracted Blues player who is out of contract on June 30th, 2026.

The 30-year-old has been with the Second City outfit since June 2023, when he initially signed a one-year deal after leaving Blackpool, before a further year extension clause was triggered last October.

However, in a record-breaking side, the winger was an extremely consistent figure, racking up a total of seven goals and five assists from the left flank.

Minutes have been much harder for Anderson to come by this term, though, as the form of the returning Demarai Gray has been particularly impressive, whilst the experienced figure was also sidelined throughout September through injury.

James Beadle

James Beadle moved to Birmingham on a season-long loan in July after two mixed stints with Sheffield Wednesday.

The 21-year-old had to initially bide his time in terms of regular minutes, but has kept his place in Davies' side after his league debut against Wrexham on October 4, and was particularly impressive in back-to-back 4-0 wins at St. Andrew's against Portsmouth and Millwall at the start of the month.

Beadle will have to keep battling with Ryan Allsop for a starting spot, although if Birmingham remain in the Championship next season, they're unlikely going to get the towering stopper back, as he could be a future number one at Brighton.

Eiran Cashin

It seems highly unlikely at this stage that Eiran Cashin's own loan stint from the Seagulls will be turned permanent.

The centre-back, who cost Albion £9 million from Derby County in January, has been in and out of Davies' side after failing to make an immediate impression, whilst fellow summer recruit, Phil Neumann, has done exactly that alongside newly-appointed captain, Christoph Klarer.

Should all parties agree to it, Cashin's exit from Birmingham could come as early as January, if a new home can be found for the left-footed centre-half for the rest of the season, but he may still provide useful squad depth for Davies.

Tommy Doyle

Tommy Doyle had also previously failed to nail down a starting berth following his loan switch from Wolverhampton Wanders.

However, fast-forward four weeks, and the ex-Manchester City man is starting to showcase exactly why Blues courted his signature on a temporary basis to start with, as they also have a reported £10m option-to-buy for the deep-lying midfielder, whose parent club could be renewing local rivalry with Birmingham next season as they find themselves rock-bottom of the Premier League.

It's an expensive option indeed, but it's one that may be worth triggering if Birmingham swap places with Wolves come the end of the season.

Lewis Koumas

Lewis Koumas has divided opinion amongst Bluenoses across the first two-and-a-half months of his loan switch from Liverpool.

At 20 years of age, this is only the Welsh international's second loan stint away from Anfield, having endured a mixed stint at Stoke City last season.

However, it remains to be seen what the immediate future and the remainder of his senior career has in store at this moment in time - and whether or not he'll make the grade at Anfield.

Patrick Roberts

It's fair to say, though, that Blues' standout loan recruit has been Patrick Roberts from Sunderland.

The experienced wide player has made an immediate impression on the right flank in Davies' system, creating a multitude of chances, as well as firmly being amongst the goals and assists, which begun on September 17th as he provided Lyndon Dykes' last-gasp winner against Swansea City.

As a result, many Bluenoses are urging the club to target a cut-price deal in January for the ex-Celtic man, a scenario which his temporary boss has already discussed too.