Birmingham City backed to sell player who 'couldn't hack it' as fresh exit nears | OneFootball

Birmingham City have decided to cut their ties with the forward

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Birmingham City have been backed in their decision to offload winger Emil Hansson, with a departure now nearing for the Swede.

The Second City side have experienced mixed fortunes since returning to the second-tier, unable to fully join the play-off fight whilst steering well clear of relegation.

Expectations within the club are much higher than that however, with chairman Tom Wagner repeatedly speaking about how they are aiming to operate out of the Premier League in the future.

This ambitious attitude has seen the club attack the transfer market aggressively in previous years, as they attempt to build a team competitive enough to challenge for a place in the top-flight.

Some of these signings have worked out for the better, such as the acquisition of Jay Stansfield on a permanent basis in 2024. However, others have failed to perform to a similar standard.

Birmingham City praised for Emil Hansson transfer decision

Emil Hansson joined Birmingham City from Dutch side Heracles in 2024, but immediately failed to live up to expectations.

In 20 League One appearances, the forward scored just once, a poor return when playing in such a dominant team. The Swede looked unable to match the physicality of English football and was sent back to the third-tier this term, on loan at Blackpool.

The 27-year-old has managed just one assist in 17 League One matches, which has been enough for Birmingham to call time on his career with them. According to Expressen, Excelsior Rotterdam are expected to sign Hansson in the coming days.

When queried on whether this was the right decision to make, Football League World’s Birmingham City fan pundit, Jason Moore, believes that there is nothing else the club could have done regarding Hansson.

“100 per cent the correct option for him,” stated Jason. “The correct option for Blues. It just hasn't worked out.

“He's not suited to English football. He hasn't been able to stay fit. There were little glimpses when he first signed, but that was down in League One and then he couldn't quite seem to hack it.

“Get his wages off the books, even though I can't imagine they could be much. Take the hit on the money we spent on him and he can go back to a league where he's performed.

“Sadly it didn't work out, but hopefully he can go and get his career back on track and we can go spend the money elsewhere.

Birmingham City's Emil Hansson failed to live up to expectations in English football

When Hansson arrived at St. Andrew’s in 2024, there was much excitement about what he could add to Birmingham’s side.

Having scored 16 goals and provided 19 assists in a stellar 2022/23 campaign for Heracles operating out of the Dutch second-tier, there were hopes that this contribution could translate over to the English League One.

However, it was apparent immediately that the 27-year-old wasn’t able to acclimatise to his new surroundings, with strong performances few and far between.

In the end, Birmingham had no choice but to cut their losses on the forward and admit that the transfer didn’t work out for both parties.