Birmingham City suffer Ibrahim Osman transfer setback | OneFootball

Birmingham City want to lure Ibrahim Osman back to St Andrew's, but their valuations and Brighton's are not aligning

It's been a bit of a slow transfer window thus far at Birmingham City, as Chris Davies looks to assess his squad in pre-season to outline what he needs ahead of his third season in charge at St Andrew's.

Dael Fry is the only real new addition, with Jhon Solis making his loan move permanent from Girona this summer, too. While there'll be an onus on improving all across the squad, there's an extra focus on adding to their forward areas.

Demarai Gray was deployed as a makeshift striker during parts of their pre-season win over Solihull Moors on Wednesday, as discussions continue over Kyogo Furuhashi's departure, but it's not just a striker that the Blues need to add.

Birmingham need a wideman, too, after they lost Ibrahim Osman back to Brighton and Hove Albion at the end of his loan spell. The 21-year-old scored and assisted twice in 17 Championship outings at St Andrew's after arriving in January.

Osman is yet to play for the Seagulls, and after a buy option was inserted into a previous loan spell at Auxerre in the first half of last season, there was speculation that a permanent deal could be struck with the Blues this summer.

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That buy clause with the Ligue 1 outfit this time last summer stood at €16 million, which would have seen Brighton nearly break even after they invested £16 million in Osman back in February 2024 from FC Nordsjaelland.

With the 21-year-old under contract for another three seasons at the Amex Stadium, Fabian Hurzeler's side are under no pressure to sell for a cut-price, and still feel they can hold out for a decent fee this summer.

According to Birmingham Live, that valuation is "poles apart" from what Birmingham want to offer for the winger.

Chris Davies has spoken of his desire to keep Osman at the club past his short-term loan spell last season.

Following the final-day draw at Portsmouth, the Blues boss stressed the importance of quality over quantity signings and keeping the majority of the group together heading into their second season back in the Championship.

With 13 of Osman's 17 league appearances coming from the off, it's evident that he has an admirer in Davies, who feels he can help oversee the Ghanaian achieving his potential if he can get a move over the line.

How Kai Wagner's sale can help Birmingham City ramp up Ibrahim Osman pursuit

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One of the seemingly more surprising transfer tales at Birmingham so far this summer is the imminent return to Philadelphia for Kai Wagner, who arrived at St Andrew's from the MLS side in January and immediately became Chris Davies' first choice in the position.

However, for personal reasons, the 29-year-old is keen to return to the American side, where he played for seven years before the Blues switch.

The Birmingham Live report states that the Championship outfit are set to make a profit on the £2 million they spent in January to bring him across the Atlantic, believing that they'll receive £3.8 million for Wagner this summer.

That money can be reinvested, and with Alex Cochrane and Lee Buchanan in reserve, Chris Davies may be set at left-back if the duo can remain injury-free all year.

Therefore, the fee for Wagner could be used elsewhere in the squad, and could go towards presenting Brighton with an improved offer for Osman.

Birmingham have been no strangers to throwing their weight around when it comes to prospective signings, and Wagner's sale could open up even more of a possibility to make a splash and sign their former loanee for a big, eight-figure fee.

But if the Blues hierarchy doesn't see Osman as worth that much, perhaps a sale elsewhere won't make much of a difference in a pursuit, especially if Brighton want to keep their valuation set.