Birmingham City fans will be counting down the days now until the bumper Championship fixture schedule is released, with the full set of matches finally out in the open for eager Blues fans next Thursday.
Then, it will be full steam ahead with pre-season matches galore, as the expectant St. Andrew’s masses clamour to see some new, major signings in the flesh.
So far, only Phil Neumann has hopped on board the Birmingham train, but there will surely be more fresh purchases to come, especially as the clock gradually starts to tick down to the start of the hotly anticipated second-tier season.
Chris Davies and Co. could be about to land a surprise new signing from the Eredivisie if reports are correct, away from ongoing pursuits of former heroes such as Demarai Gray.
Birmingham offered chance to sign Eredivisie talent
Journalist Graeme Bailey has revealed that Birmingham have been offered to chance to snap up Finnish talent Oliver Antman this summer.
Bailey does further state that Blackburn Rovers have also been offered up the same opportunity, but the Blues will hope they can flex their muscles once more in the market by snapping up the standout Go Ahead Eagles winger over Valerien Ismael’s men.
The Finland international has been a top performer in the Netherlands for some time now, and whilst there is a lot of sentimentality attached to Birmingham wanting to bring Gray back to St. Andrew’s, landing the services of Antman instead could be seen as an even more exciting purchase.
Why Antman could be a more exciting signing than Gray
After all, it’s not as if the former Blues winger has been setting the world alight in the Saudi Pro League as of late.
Worryingly, his output across 2024/25 so far for Al-Ettifaq has only seen the Jamaica international collect a solitary assist from 25 games, with no goals coming his way.
Therefore, the declining 28-year-old might not be cut out for the pressures of Championship football anymore, irrespective of his previous eight goals and four assists at the level with his hometown side.
|
Antman’s league numbers for Go Ahead Eagles (24/25) |
|
|---|---|
|
Stat (* = per game) |
Antman |
|
Games played |
32 |
|
Goals scored |
6 |
|
Assists |
15 |
|
Shots* |
1.7 |
|
Key passes* |
1.5 |
|
Big chances missed |
11 |
|
Big chances created |
16 |
|
Stats by Sofascore |
|
On the flip side, when assessing the table above, Antman looks more than ready to cause havoc in the demanding division, with the 23-year-old very much at the peak of his powers in the Dutch top-flight currently.
Whilst Gray has unfortunately receded into his shell in the Middle East, the ex-FC Nordsjælland attacker has exploded into life on the books of the Eredivisie side, with a mammoth 16 big chances created across his 32 league clashes, away from tallying up a stellar record of six goals and 15 assists.
To add further context, the waning Al-Ettifaq number 11 only managed to create four big chances across the same period, with Birmingham needing to cut all emotion from their transfer dealings if they want to significantly strengthen their options.
Instead of going after Gray, they must prioritise a move for Antman, with football talent scout Jacek Kulig even going on to hail the 23-year-old’s “creative” prowess recently.
With seven goals under his belt too on the international stage with Finland, it feels as if the Go Ahead Eagles ace could soon take the English game by storm.
Antman’s creative excellence will also be music to the ears of the likes of Jay Stansfield and Alfie May, as a new, exciting Championship campaign begins to hurtle into view.
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