Birmingham City, West Brom & Wrexham AFC linked with ex-Spurs star | OneFootball

Birmingham, West Brom and Wrexham have all been linked with a shock move for Dele Ali.

Birmingham City, West Brom and Wrexham have all been linked with a shock move for out-of-contract midfielder Dele Ali.

This is according to the Daily Mail, who believe the ex-England international could be making a return to his homeland after a brief and unsuccessful stint in Italy with Como.

The 29-year-old has failed to hit the promising heights he once had after breaking through at Spurs.

After leaving the North London outfit in 2022, he made 13 appearances for Everton before making a switch overseas to Turkey with Besiktas, playing just 13 league games too.

He continued his stay abroad by moving to Italy with Como, but he only made one appearance in Serie A, which resulted in a red card 10 minutes into his debut.

This led to manager Cesc Fàbregas banishing him from their training camp this summer and his contract was terminated.

In fact, it’s approaching three years since Ali last played 90 minutes in a game, with personal struggles getting in the way of him kicking on and establishing himself as one of the world’s top players.

This would be a gamble for any football club to take on, but the likes of Birmingham, West Brom and Wrexham see it as a risk worth pursuing given his previous credentials and a need to play regular first-team football as he hits the reset button on his career.

Birmingham City, West Brom and Wrexham eye Dele Ali swoop

As per a report by the Daily Mail, Championship trio Birmingham City, West Brom and Wrexham are all interested in a shock move for midfielder Dele Ali, who remains a free agent following his release from Italian side Como.

The report has detailed that Ali has been going through a lot of personal battles recently, dealing with the death of long-term friend George Baldock, while his relationship with partner Cindy Kimberly recently came to an end.

But it now appears the former England international is ready to put football back to the forefront of his mind and ply his trade in the second-tier, despite reports earlier in this summer revealing that he was considering retirement.

It is believed Ali would be in favour of making a move to any of the clubs, with Birmingham City and Wrexham appealing options given their well-documented rises through significant American investment, while Albion are also American-owned with Shilen Patel and are battling at the top end of the division.

And Albion boss Ryan Mason could have the pulling power to force Ali’s hand over a move.

Mason has had previous experience of managing Ali during his interim stints as Spurs boss, bringing him into his plans after he had previously been frozen out by José Mourinho.

The writer of the report, Luke Power, believes the best fit for Ali would be at The Hawthorns, where there would be less scrutiny, but for now, it is all talk, and no concrete offers have been made.

Signing Dele Ali could be a gamble worth taking on one condition

There’s no doubt that signing someone like Dele Ali would be a huge gamble.

The former England wonderkid has failed to play any regular football over the last three years, struggling with injuries as well as his personal battles off the field.

But there’s no doubt he’s still an immensely talented footballer. He just needs the right environment and support system to help him get his life back on track and to do his talking on the pitch consistently.

And if any of the Championship clubs were to lure him into a move, then it must be on a pay-as-you-play contract.

That would ensure a club would be getting the maximum effort out of him to stay fit and play regularly, as well as benefiting the team by allowing him to showcase his qualities and help a club fight towards promotion to the Premier League.

If Ali arrives in the Championship, it would be one of the biggest signings the second-tier has ever witnessed, and it could be the perfect place to reinvigorate himself and allow the 29-year-old to get on an upwards trajectory after so many lows.