Sell, loan or keep? The Birmingham City players who face an uncertain month ahead | OneFootball

Birmingham City will be hoping to build upon the point that they earned in their clash with Luton Town by securing some positive results in their upcoming league fixtures.

In terms of the club’s transfer activity this summer, the Blues have opted to part ways with a number of individuals.

Fran Villalba, Ivan Sanchez, Kristian Pedersen, Jeremie Bela and Connal Trueman have left Birmingham on a permanent basis whilst Ivan Sunjic has been loaned out to Hertha Berlin.

Given that the window is not set to close until September, Birmingham may decide to sanction some more departures in the coming weeks.

Here, we have decided to take a look at three Blues players who face an uncertain month ahead and assess whether the club should sell, loan or keep them…

Sell: Harlee Dean

As per a recent report from The Mirror, Birmingham will be looking to cut their wage bill if a prospective takeover deal involving Paul Richardson and Maxi Lopez is finalised.

One of the individuals who the Blues will be looking to move on is Harlee Dean who is believed to earn £31,000-per-week at St Andrew’s.

Loaned out to Sheffield Wednesday last season, Dean has entered the final year of his contract with Birmingham and thus the club could potentially secure a fee for him between now and the end of the window if he attracts interest from elsewhere.

When you consider that Birmingham are able to call upon the services of Dion Sanderson, Marc Roberts, Auston Trusty, Nico Gordon and George Friend who are all capable of playing in the heart of defence, it could turn out to be a sensible move to sanction an exit for Dean.

Loan: Odin Bailey

Having opted to retain Odin Bailey’s services for another year, it will be interesting to see what the immediate future holds for the winger.

Unless Bailey is able to force his way into the club’s starting eleven in their upcoming league fixtures, it could be argued that the Blues ought to consider sanctioning another loan move for him before the window shuts.

Given that the 22-year-old has previously featured in League Two for Forest Green Rovers, the club could find it beneficial to send him to a League One side who are willing to play him on week-in, week-out.

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By making strides in terms of his development, Bailey could boost his chances of becoming an important player for Birmingham in future seasons.

One of the other players who was mentioned in The Mirror’s report regarding Birmingham’s willingness to cut their wage bill is Neil Etheridge.

It is understood that the goalkeeper currently earns £21,000-per-week at St Andrew’s and thus would be allowed to leave if they receive a suitable offer from elsewhere.

Instead of parting ways with Etheridge this summer, the Blues ought to consider keeping him at the club as he will be able to provide competition for John Ruddy in this particular position.

If Ruddy, who started against Luton last weekend suffers an injury or picks up a suspension, Etheridge will be confident in his ability to fill in for his team-mate as he has made 129 appearances at this level during his career.