Celtic winger & Brighton loanee can give Birmingham City the dream start to January | OneFootball

FLW has looked at how Blues could make an ideal start to the upcoming transfer window

Birmingham City's recent results and performances have only heightened the importance of the upcoming January transfer window, with it apparent that Chris Davies is in need of reinforcements.

Of course, previous transfer activity at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park under the ownership of Knighthead Capital Management also means that any business conducted in this part of the West Midlands is likely to be analysed at length.

The first half of the Championship season has been one of inconsistency for Birmingham, who, at times, have showcased exactly why they were tipped, by many, to immediately make their mark on the second tier after winning the League One title by a 19-point difference, but have also shown a concerning side to their performances, particularly on the road.

During the two summer transfer windows which Davies has overseen since his appointment at St. Andrew's in June 2024, Blues have spent fairly heavily on a handful of players, such as club-record signing Jay Stansfield on Deadline Day in August 2024, as well as Kyogo Furuhashi, who is yet to justify why Birmingham parted with £10m of Tom Wagner's funding to secure the Japanese international forward's services from Stade Rennais in July.

14 signings were made on either a permanent or temporary basis by the Second City club across the summer, with there being an extremely mixed overall review in terms of how each individual has performed since their respective arrivals.

With the jury still out on a number of those, as well as a lack of depth and, perhaps, quality in certain areas, it wouldn't be the greatest of surprises to see a handful of moves conducted on the incomings and outgoings front in the coming weeks, despite the fact the winter window is notoriously quiet in comparison, due to its short-lived timescale.

However, Football League World have identified two players - in terms of both an arrival and a departure - whose potential circumstances could kickstart an ideal window for Birmingham as they look to improve their results and performance levels at the turn of the year.

In: Yang Hyun-Jun

Blues have already been linked with a handful of names that could arrive at St. Andrew's when the upcoming window opens in January, as well as their transfer strategy being widely reported.

It was claimed that FC Basel winger, Philip Otele, had emerged as a potential candidate to take up a spot as one of Davies' wide options. However, with the Nigerian set to cost between €8m and €10m whilst facing competition from FA Cup holders, Crystal Palace, the previously targeted Yang Hyun-Jun of Celtic could be an extremely viable alternative.

Despite eventually recruiting the likes of Demarai Gray, Patrick Roberts and Lewis Koumas on top of League One title-winner, Keshi Anderson, Yang was a high-profile target for Davies throughout the latter stages of the summer transfer window, and was the subject of an eventual £3m deal between the two clubs which collapsed on Deadline Day.

Anderson and Koumas have since struggled to make any great impact across the opening four months of the season, with recent claims emerging that the latter could be recalled by Liverpool in the coming weeks, which would also free up a loan spot should Blues dip back into that particular market for further reinforcements.

However, with Yang boasting a greater turn of pace and directness to that of Koumas, this particular deal could offer Birmingham a wide player which they have been lacking in terms of potential substitute options, with it hard to envisage that the Korean winger would immediately displace one of Gray or Roberts on either flank.

It would also be a further boost for the Midlands outfit should they land his signature knowing that one of their potential play-off rivals, Preston North End, could not acquire his services, with the Lilywhites and Norwich City also interested.

Out: Eiran Cashin

On the outgoings front, Blues could free up another loan spot if Eiran Cashin was to see his loan spell cut short, meaning the Irish defender would return to Brighton and Hove Albion.

Like many other summer signings, Blues supporters reacted to this particular deal with plenty of encouragement, with the 24-year-old previously impressing at this level for Derby County, subsequently earning a £9m move to the AMEX Stadium in the previous winter window on a long-term contract.

However, it clearly hasn't worked out for Cashin at St. Andrew's, and reports earlier in December hinted that a potential recall could well be in the works, as he has failed to edge his way past the likes of Christoph Klarer, Phil Neumann and Jack Robinson in the pecking order.

The Mansfield-born man has been an unused substitute more times than he has appeared for Blues in the Championship, which will only add to his personal frustrations, as well as those from representatives at his parent club, who will believe the former youth international has to be sourcing regular minutes almost week-in, week-out, at this stage of his career.