Birmingham City could offer departing Burnley player full-circle Premier League moment | OneFootball

Nathan Redmond has been released by Burnley and he could, perhaps should, make a romantic return to Birmingham City this summer.

Former England international winger Nathan Redmond has been released by Burnley and there is now the romantic possibility of a return to Birmingham City, where he could help the Blues push for a return to the Premier League next season.

Redmond, who has a solitary England cap to his name back in 2017 in a 1-0 loss to Germany at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund, joined the Clarets on a two-year deal in the summer of 2023 but only managed 12 appearances for the club as they suffered relegation from the top-flight.

Now, after once again being a fringe player for Scott Parker’s side as they finished as Championship runners’ up this season, the 31-year-old winger is a free agent and a return to St Andrew's is one that would surely suit both parties.

As Birmingham embark upon a summer transfer window whereby they will aim to build a squad capable of challenging for a return to the Premier League, Redmond would appear a smart, romantic and cost-effective addition to their squad.

Redmond did not fulfil Premier League dream with Birmingham

Redmond signed his first professional contract in the summer of 2010 but didn’t make an appearance in the league in the 2010/11 season as Blues were relegated from the top-flight.

He made three appearances for the second city club, with one coming in the FA Cup and two in the League Cup, which they eventually won with a defeat of Arsenal in the final at Wembley Stadium.

He established himself as a key man for the club over the next two seasons, with strong performances in the Championship as well as in their 2011/12 UEFA Europa League campaign.

In the summer of 2013, he departed Birmingham for the Premier League with a move to the Canaries for a fee believed to be in the region of an initial £2 million and has since gone on to make 276 appearances in England’s top division for three clubs: Norwich, Southampton and Burnley.

However, born and bred in Birmingham, signing for the club at the age of eight in 2002, playing in the Premier League with his hometown club would fulfil a romantic narrative for himself and the ambitious League One winners.

Redmond would fit well in the Birmingham squad

Birmingham spent heavily last summer as they sought to rebuild following their shock relegation from the Championship, and they eventually amassed a record-breaking 111 points to win the third-tier title, beating the previous EFL record points tally of 106, set by Reading in the 2005/06 Championship season.

Chris Davies plays a possession-dominant style of football that does require a lot of work from the wingers, both with and without the ball, but it is one area of the pitch that Birmingham will be looking to bolster this summer.

Football League World exclusively revealed they were willing to offer Peterborough United winger Kwame Poku a £30,000 per week deal, and they perhaps do lack a bit out-wide with Luke Harris returning to Fulham after his loan spell at St Andrew's and the likes of Emil Hansson and Scott Wright not necessarily thriving following their moves from Heracles and Rangers respectively last summer.

Redmond would not only provide experience to what is a young-ish squad, but he would surely also be able to contribute in terms of much-needed added Championship-level quality in the final third. Reports around Christmas indicated that Redmond was indeed a Birmingham transfer target in January 2025.

The ceiling of Birmingham’s squad remains unknown and there are some players that will believe they will one day be Premier League ready, most notably club record signing Jay Stansfield.

However, as they make the step-up to the Championship, they will want to deepen their squad and raise the floor of their standard, too – and Redmond would help do that.

There is, of course, the romantic element of Redmond, who never made a Premier League appearance for his hometown club, returning to lift them back into the top-flight for the first time in well over a decade, but it would also be a practical and smart addition by the Blues.