2 Birmingham City players likely to follow Jordan James out of St Andrew's | OneFootball

Birmingham City were relegated to the third tier of English football for the first time since 1995, but will be hopeful of bouncing back up to the Championship at the first time of asking, with Chris Davies now at the helm.

Under new ownership, the Blues have certainly shown ambition and the first shoots of a potential start of an exciting new dawn had begun to spring last year, but relegation has undone some of the good work in the summer, with managerial appointments a particular issue in 2023/24.

However, there's no doubting that Birmingham have plenty of money behind them to go and build a good squad in League One. That much is clear with the planned investment into the new Sports Quarter in the city, which will feature a brand new stadium and training facility for the team.

These state-of-the-art facilities, as they are planned to be, should have a team to use them that measures up to its standards. That may not be the case at the moment, but relegation is hoped to be just a small setback in the club's current situation. Those involved with the club will hope that this is just an early blip.

Tottenham Hotspur's assistant Davies has been appointed as their new boss, and his era in charge will look to bring about greater for a Blues side that have failed to finish above 17th in the Championship for seven seasons in a row.

Naturally, following relegation, wins will be easier to come by, but it also means a large number of their squad are set to leave, either as free agents, to return to their parent clubs from loan spells, or key players who are too good for third tier football.

It means the rebuilding job will be a fairly sizeable one, and one player who is certain to be in demand is Jordan James, with the Welsh starlet putting out immense displays, in spite of the club's difficult campaign. Here, we take a look at two further players that are likely to follow him out of St. Andrew's.

1 Krystian Bielik

Krystian Bielik is the sort of profile that could be transformative for Birmingham, if they are able to retain him in League One, as he is the sort of player to build the team around for a promotion push.

The 26-year-old, who spent a year on loan at St Andrew's and impressed under John Eustace, signed a three-year deal with the West Midlands club last summer on a permanent basis. Having suffered from multiple cruciate ligament injuries, Bielik's career could have already been over as well.

However, he managed to stay fit for Blues last term and justified why they made a move for him in the summer, for a low risk fee. He was one of the players to emerge with real credit in spite of the club's relegation from the Championship.

He is a strong, aggressive, combative, and comfortable midfielder in possession. He can progress the ball, has good press-resistant qualities, can break up play, and at his best has a real engine in midfield as well. All of that, and his age, is exactly why he will have suitors at a higher level.

Derby once paid a club-record £9.5 million fee to Arsenal for the Polish midfielder, highlighting his quality, and explaining why Birmingham have very little chance of keeping him for 2024/25.

2 Siriki Dembélé

The transfer of Siriki Dembélé brought so much excitement among the Birmingham fanbase last summer. However, he struggled to build up a consistent run of form, but he has bags of obvious natural talent.

He evidently has the ability to make a difference at this level and should have a role to play if they can retain him, as he can produce moments of magic that Blues will need to get out of the third tier.

Signed from Premier League Bournemouth last summer, Dembélé was unlike anything Birmingham had seen in recent years in terms of his pace, dynamism, and directness in attack, but those are qualities that have translated to good form in his career previously, at a higher level than League One at that.

His brace against Huddersfield in October showed what he could offer. But then came the struggle for consistent minutes with all the managerial changes over the season. Despite that, there should be offers at a higher level this summer, and ones the club will surely consider.

With a bit of stability and an arm around the shoulder, Dembélé could flourish, be that with Blues or elsewhere. His flair could cause havoc in League One, but it's difficult to see a world where he is plying outside of English football's second tier, or possibly back in Scotland.