The 8-figure transfer fee Birmingham City are set to pay Wolves for Tommy Doyle in 2026 | OneFootball

Blues are closing in on a deal to sign the technically-gifted midfielder

The sum which Birmingham City will have to pay West Midlands rivals, Wolverhampton Wanderers, to eventually secure Tommy Doyle's services on a permanent basis next summer has been revealed.

Football League World exclusively revealed on June 25 that Blues were to edge out Premier League newcomers Sunderland and the equally ambitious Wrexham for Doyle's services, agreeing a loan deal with the Molineux club which included an option to sign the 23-year-old permanently in 2026.

As per a fresh update from Alan Nixon via his Patreon service, it has been claimed that Birmingham would have to part with an eight-figure fee for the Manchester City academy graduate, and are set to offer a far greater financial package than upcoming Championship rivals, Sheffield United, who Doyle previously impressed on loan for during a promotion-winning campaign two years ago.

The eight-figure fee Birmingham City would have to pay Wolves for permanent Tommy Doyle deal in 2026 revealed

Doyle has banked a total of 52 games, five goals and seven assists in the Championship during his relatively short career thus far, with all of those coming in loan stints with Cardiff City and the aforementioned Blades between January 2022 and May 2023.

The Manchester-born man was then handed his first regular taste of Premier League football with Wolves, who would eventually agree a £4.3m permanent fee 12 months ago, before Gary O'Neil was dismissed and replaced by Vitor Pereira.

The Portuguese raised concerns regarding Doyle's physicality in relation to the demands of the top-flight, making just 12 appearances since his appointment in December.

As per FLW's recent exclusive, Chris Davies and the recruitment team at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park earmarked the former England youth international as one of several potential high-profile targets across the summer window following their record-breaking, title-winning campaign in League One.

They are now closing in on his signature on an initial loan basis with the option of a permanent deal coming into play next summer.

Nixon has now revealed that Blues and their competitors from South Yorkshire are looking to strike loan deals for targets as a result of financial restrictions, despite the relentless ambition showcased by Knighthead Capital Management, and that the Second City club have the edge as a result of the option-to-buy inserted in the deal coming in at a figure of £10m.

Doyle put pen-to-paper on a four-year deal at Molineux last summer after yet another option-to-buy clause was triggered, although half of the funds from the future fee, if Blues do strike an agreement, would go to Man City, due to the insertion of a 50 percent sell-on clause.

Option-to-buy deal for Tommy Doyle is smart business by Birmingham City

Not only is this a deal which makes a lot of sense due to Doyle's high technical ability, which will come into play immediately due to the style which Davies has implemented in B9, it represents smart business from Blues in a financial sense.

Tom Wagner has continuously referenced the ever-growing revenue streams in B9 - which will create further scope to invest in the squad - as well as his ambitions to see the club end their Premier League exile as soon as possible, with the brand-new 62,000-seater stadium and Sports Quarter complex on the horizon.

Doyle will immediately be competing with the likes of Tomoki Iwata and Seung-Ho Paik for a starting berth. And, whilst many Bluenoses have tipped the midfielder to make a strong impact in terms of his passing range and ball-striking ability, if it doesn't work out, Birmingham haven't been forced to fork out a hefty fee next summer, which could have impacted their ability to conduct further high-profile transfer business.