Birmingham City told to offload 'average' midfielder as Chris Davies faces big 2027 call | OneFootball

Tomoki Iwata's long-term future is currently up for debate

Birmingham City have been told to potentially offload the services of Japanese midfielder, Tomoki Iwata, at the end of the current Championship season, after what would be the player's third season at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.

Blues' ambition under Knighthead Capital Management has led to a large amount of player turnover in this part of the West Midlands in recent times, with Chris Davies currently tasked with ending the club's Premier League exile.

The 41-year-old has received plenty of backing in the transfer market to initially guide the club out of League One at the first time of asking two seasons ago, before looking to push the club forward in the second tier.

Despite conducting several high-profile transfer deals in previous windows, including a club-record deal for striker, Jay Stansfield, Birmingham didn't invest as heavily this summer in terms of their transfer spend or the number of players who moved to B9 in total.

It has certainly been an encouraging start for Blues, who have only lost one of their first eight games and currently sit 10th at the time of the season's first international break.

However, there are certainly question marks over the long-term future of some of Davies' squad, and Iwata certainly falls into said category.

Birmingham City told to make brutal Tomoki Iwata decision at end of 2026/27

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Iwata, 29, signed from Celtic on Deadline Day in August 2024, adding plenty of quality to Blues' midfield in League One, and immediately forming a strong partnership with Paik Seung-ho.

After making the third tier's Team of the Year for that campaign in Birmingham's record-breaking campaign whilst also scoring a thunderbolt against Newcastle United in the FA Cup fourth round, the Japanese featured in 45 of the club's 46 games last term, although 23 of those appearances came at right-back whilst covering for Bright Osayi-Samuel and Ethan Laird.

But despite returning to his natural midfield position and starting every Championship game so far in 2026/27, Football League World's Birmingham City fan pundit, Jason Moore, believes Iwata's time at St. Andrew's could be up next June when his contract expires.

“It's a tricky one for me. As I read the question, I was ‘umming and ahing’," he said. “But I think for me, you've probably got to let him go.

“Again, he's just not quite up to the standard for me. If we're going to move forward, especially that's how hard we're getting to the Premier League, he's not good enough for the Premier League.

“He's probably an average Championship midfielder now, he doesn't quite give us enough in the midfield," Moore claimed. “He's got great energy, done great work for the team, but he's just not good enough, and I think he could probably admit it.”

“I wouldn't be holding on to him. I’d be letting him go at the end of his contract for me, but there's probably a few of them that aren’t quite good enough to make the step-up. "

Chris Davies' prior Tomoki Iwata admission makes current Birmingham City admission interesting

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Iwata does have the flexibility to cover a handful of roles, which makes Davies' previous outlook on the utility player's circumstances all the more intriguing when looking at his current situation.

The well-rounded midfielder has featured alongside either Paik or Jhon Solis at the base of midfield in a 4-2-3-1 setup, even though many would have fancied his South Korean counterpart to continue partnering the summer addition from Girona.

As such, there has been no sign of Iwata being needed at right-back due to Bright Osayi-Samuel's impressive start to the season, even though Davies once said of the ex-Celtic man: “I think he would now be classed as a right-back who can also fill in in midfield, that’s how I see Tomoki’s position within the squad.”

Chris Davies faces big Tomoki Iwata call ahead of June 2027

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Iwata has certainly been solid, if not spectacular, for Birmingham this season, and due to the drawn-out nature of the Championship season, it wouldn't be a surprise to see him feature in various roles between now and May.

As he does with three of his counterparts, Davies faces a critical call over Iwata's future, although that could also hinge on whether Blues are challenging for promotion in the campaign's final weeks, as opposed to last season, where their campaign was all-but over by March.

That said, whilst the Oita-born man featured in the UEFA Champions League three times for Celtic, he only made 42 appearances overall at Parkhead, which would lead to some reservations as to whether he is capable of matching Birmingham's long-term vision with his own performance levels.