Leo Castledine: Birmingham & Norwich should hijack Watford’s Chelsea swoop this January | OneFootball

Leo Castledine looks set to leave his loan spell at Huddersfield Town this January, with clubs in the Championship monitoring his situation

Leo Castledine is having a superb spell in League One at Huddersfield Town on loan from Chelsea, though the attacking midfielder may well be playing his football away from the ACCU Stadium sooner rather than later.

In what is just his second loan spell away from parent club Chelsea, Leo Castledine is having a standout season in the third-tier for Huddersfield Town.

Although the Terriers sit some way off the automatic position at the halfway point of the campaign, Castledine has been one of the division's standout performers, sparking rumours of interest from clubs in the Championship.

The Athletic revealed that Chelsea has a break clause in the loan agreement, though that is set to expire a couple of weeks into the window, so if he is to be recalled, it's seemingly going to happen sooner rather than later.

With his current deal with the Blues set to expire at the end of the season, although Chelsea have an option to extend his contract by 12 months, The Sun have reported that he could be available for as little as £1 million this winter, which should alert an array of clubs around the EFL.

Indeed, Huddersfield themselves will no doubt be interested in obtaining the 20-year-old's signature permanently, with his price tag being more than affordable, though they will face competition from teams in the tier above, with Football League World exclusively revealing that at least six second-tier clubs are monitoring Castledine, putting them at an automatic disadvantage.

Clubs such as Watford and Bristol City have been linked with a move for Castledine, with the Hornets absolutely flying currently under Javi Gracia, emerging as serious contenders for a play-off place come the end of the season, though they won't be alone in chasing the Chelsea man.

We look at TWO clubs here who should be looking to hijack any deal.

Birmingham City

It hasn't quite been the season that many had expected from Birmingham City following their record-breaking points tally in League One last season, with the Blues sitting some way off the play-off places.

Their 3-2 home win over Coventry City may well have kept head coach Chris Davies in a job for now, but he has faced pressure on numerous occasions this season for a multitude of reasons.

Left-back Kai Wagner has already been signed from Philadelphia Union, and grabbed the assist for Marvin Ducksch's opener against Coventry, but there is a sense that they will need much more from the window to kick on.

With Kanya Fujimoto nowhere to be seen in the squad and Willum Willumsson making just eight league appearances so far, an attacking midfielder ought to be high on Davies' shopping list.

Jay Stansfield has played in that role to good effect behind Ducksch, though another option in that attacking frontline certainly wouldn't go amiss, especially with each of Kyogo Furuhashi, Keshi Anderson, and Lewis Koumas having netted just two goals in 63 league appearances between them this campaign.

At £1 million, Castledine is more than affordable for the Blues and would present an exciting option for the here and now, as well as the future.

Norwich City

Norwich City still occupies the final relegation place, despite an upturn in form and performances under Belgian boss Philippe Clement.

The Canaries were abysmal in the early stages of the campaign under former Bristol City boss Liam Manning, and the long-term effects of that dismal run are still hindering the club.

Canadian winger Ali Ahmed has already signed on the dotted line at Carrow Road this January, but with each of Ante Crnac, Amankwah Forson, Jeffrey Schlupp, and Papa Diallo all spending time out injured, more options are clearly needed.

Mathias Kvistgaarden has dropped out of the side as of late, whilst Matej Jurasek and Emiliano Marcondes have both struggled in the final third throughout this season.

Jacob Wright has been reintroduced to the starting 11 in the attacking-midfielder position, but there is the impression that more options will be needed in that crucial role if Norwich is to secure survival.

At just £1 million, Castledine wouldn't break the bank, and bringing in a player clearly high on confidence into a side that has lacked it for much of the season can only be a good thing.

At 20, the Chelsea youngster still has ample time to improve, and could prove to be a smart pickup for the Norfolk side, should they beat competition to his signature.