Why Birmingham City could be playing against Jude Bellingham next season | OneFootball

Blues could be facing off against their star academy graduate if all goes according to script

After a mixed return to the Championship in the first half of the season, Birmingham City have certainly reignited their chances of achieving back-to-back promotions in the opening weeks of 2026.

Activity at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park - both on and off the pitch - has come under the microscope in recent times, with ownership group, Knighthead Capital Management, hoping to successfully return Blues to the Premier League for the first time since May 2011 as soon as they possibly can.

Whilst Tom Wagner's rebuilding job in this part of the Second City has lasted almost three years now, the American's ambitions of making a success out of his hefty investment only grew stronger after Birmingham were disastrously relegated to League One for the first time in 30 years at the end of the 2023/24 campaign.

What has since followed has been a remarkable transformation of multiple facets associated with the club and the community it proudly serves, with current manager, Chris Davies, also at the forefront of such proceedings since his appointment in June 2024.

Birmingham bounced back from their woes in record-breaking fashion last term, winning the League One title with 111 points, before they immediately became favourites to, at least, achieve a play-off spot in the Championship this season after continued investment in the transfer market.

Davies and Wagner have since overhauled their squad a fair amount, with six new faces coming into the club in January amid a six-game unbeaten run in the league, which has seen them well and truly narrow the gap on sixth in a congested play-off race.

And, if all goes to plan in the next three months, not only could St. Andrew's be hosting Premier League football once more, a former Blues favourite could be facing off against them as a result.

Jude Bellingham could return to St. Andrew's next season if Birmingham City realise their promotion dreams

In recent years, one man has become a clear inspiration to football fans in the West Midlands, and that is none other than Jude Bellingham.

The playmaker has risen to world stardom in the six-and-a-half years which have followed his senior debut for Blues in an EFL Cup tie against Portsmouth in August 2019.

The boyhood Bluenose would only last one season in the club's first-team under Pep Clotet, scoring four times in 44 appearances, before moving to Borussia Dortmund in July 2020 in a high-profile £25m transfer move.

After three years at the Signal Iduna Park, the 46-time England international then moved to current employers, Real Madrid, for a staggering initial £88.5m fee.

Bellingham has since won a multitude of club and personal accolades with the Galacticos, but his spell at the Bernabeu could be reaching a swift end, according to reports, and he could soon be returning to St. Andrew's sooner than he may have envisaged.

According to reports in Spain, which have been relayed by Football365, the 22-year-old has green-lighted a summer move to Manchester United, on the condition that Real Madrid are to appoint Jürgen Klopp as manager, as they are currently under the interim management of Alvaro Arbeloa following the departure of Xabi Alonso.

It has been claimed that Bellingham has expressed concerns over a potential change to his midfield role, whilst the Red Devils, who are also under the interim management of Michael Carrick at present, would look to make him the heartbeat of their side.

Birmingham City fans would find it strange seeing Jude Bellingham in an opposition side at St. Andrew's

Bellingham, of course, is a celebrated figure in the West Midlands, with Blues retiring his number 22 after striking the aforementioned deal with Dortmund, despite becoming the subject of ridicule from rival supporters as a result.

The club's youngest-ever player and scorer has since gone on from strength-to-strength, and could be back in English football for the first time since then if United are to complete an eye-catching transfer raid.

It remains to be seen if Davies' side can achieve promotion through the play-offs at the end of this season, but if they are to, there is a chance they could be lining up against Bellingham next term.

It would certainly be a strange sight to see the playmaker at St. Andrew's not wearing the royal blue if that was to be the case, in what would be the first meeting in B9 between them and the 20-time champions since December 2010, where a 1-1 draw was played out.