Fabio Carvalho may leave Brentford: Hull City, Birmingham City and Millwall must be on red alert | OneFootball

The Portuguese playmaker's situation is likely to alert a whole host of potential suitors

Fabio Carvalho has previously been one of the EFL's shining lights, and he looks set to be on the move once again in the upcoming winter transfer window amid uncertainty at current employers, Brentford.

Indeed, it has been reported by Sky Sports that the 23-year-old is rather displeased with the minutes he is currently receiving under Keith Andrews at the Gtech Community Stadium, with the Bees well and truly silencing their pre-season critics who predicted a season of struggle following Thomas Frank's switch to Tottenham Hotspur.

Carvalho joined the West London side in the summer of 2024 from Liverpool in a deal worth up to £27.5m, and one in which the Merseyside outfit will receive 17.5% of any future sale made by the Bees, which could be as early as January based off the aforementioned reports.

With the playmaker's career seemingly at a crossroads after making 32 appearances for Brentford thus far, with his sixth goal for the club in all competitions coming against Grimsby Town in the EFL Cup last 16 on October 28th, Football League World have identified three Championship clubs who should be on red alert and already monitoring the 23-year-old's situation ahead of a potential swoop at the turn of the year.

Hull City

Just 18 months ago, the one-time Championship title winner with Fulham had returned to the EFL on loan from Anfield, becoming one of several high-profile acquisitions made by Hull City in Liam Rosenior's only full season in charge at the MKM Stadium.

Carvalho became an immediate favourite at the MKM Stadium for a four-month period, scoring nine times and posting a further two assists in just 20 league encounters for the Tigers, albeit they fell short of their play-off ambitions as a collective.

Despite the fact Hull are now managed by Sergej Jakirovic and are working under a transfer fee restriction, owner Acun Ilicali recently revealed that he remains in contact with the Brentford man, which could aid another audacious loan move in rather intriguing circumstances as City currently find themselves on the periphery of the play-off places.

Birmingham City

Birmingham City's return to the Championship hasn't exactly gone as fully envisaged, with Chris Davies reportedly under pressure amid a mixed run of form in the past two months.

Despite a continued raft of high-profile incomings, Blues have regularly struggled to provide high-quality service for the likes of Jay Stansfield, Kyogo Furuhashi, Marvin Ducksch and Lyndon Dykes in the opening two-and-a-half months of the campaign.

Given his versatility, Carvalho can be positioned either out wide or in his natural 'number 10' role and provide a link between deep-lying midfielders, wingers and centre-forwards in order to ease said woes. The West Midlands side currently rank 20th when it comes to shots on target per match as well as missing 24 of the 33 big chances they've forged in the opening 13 games - albeit several metrics were enhanced in the 4-0 demolition of Portsmouth on Saturday afternoon.

Blues have already made five loan signings thus far and are only allowed as many in a matchday squad, meaning one of their current temporary incomings in the form of James Beadle, Eiran Cashin, Tommy Doyle, Patrick Roberts or Lewis Koumas may see their own stay at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park cut short to facilitate the Bees attacking midfielder.

Millwall

Millwall have emerged as potential promotion material in the early stages of Alex Neil's first full season at The Den, and the chances of a return to the top flight for the first time since 1990 would only be enhanced if Carvalho made a temporary switch across London.

The Lions have recruited several young talents and high-profile names looking for regular first-team football, with Japhet Tanganga a recent prime example of such a predicament, as he eventually moved to Sheffield United for £7m in August despite a £1.2m release clause which attracted plenty of Premier League interest.

Neil has seen Femi Azeez return to form of late alongside Thierno Ballo and the previously in-demand Mihailo Ivanovic, whilst Luke Cundle has featured in the 'number 10' role in recent outings.

As such, it is an area which the Scot could look to add further depth and quality, and Carvalho certainly fits that bill, having previously accumulated 19 goals and 10 assists at Championship level after bursting onto the scene with Fulham.

Another factor which could aid a potential swoop by Millwall is the current progression of Carvalho's former teammate, Tristan Crama, who has gone from strength-to-strength in SE16 ever since making a permanent switch from the Gtech in January.