"A worthwhile gamble" - Reaction given as Birmingham City reject £5m Premier League bid | OneFootball

FLW's Birmingham City fan pundit voiced his feelings on the bid.

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

On deadline day, Brentford completed the loan signing of Birmingham City's Romelle Donovan, who joined the club's B team for the remainder of the season.

Last week, further details emerged, with sources telling Football Insider that the Blues turned down a £5m bid from the Bees before he completed the move.

With the winger making impressive progress in West London, Birmingham will be confident Donovan's value will increase ahead of his return to the West Midlands.

Conflicting thoughts on Brentford's Donovan bid

Brentford's £5m bid for Donovan was a substantial one considering the Blues' current standing in the English football pyramid, but clearly the club are confident of yielding a greater profit in the future.

However, FLW's fan pundit, Mike Gibbs, is unsure whether Birmingham's decision was the correct one and revealed he is torn on the matter.

"I'm not sure if it was a good decision. I'm a little bit mixed on it," Mike told Football League World.

"I think the potential is there with Romelle Donovan, but you know, he's certainly not kicked on from where he was last year.

"He didn't do particularly well at Burton during the first half of the season. Part of me goes well, he's not really kicking on, so £5m for someone who only played a handful of Championship games is good business."

Donovan's loan spell at Burton Albion earlier in the season did not go to plan, with the 18-year-old only playing 176 minutes of League One football with no output.

However, his short stint at Brentford has already started in contrasting fashion, with the teenager netting two goals in two games for Brentford's B team.

If the right-winger can continue his form in West London, then Chris Davies' side will feel justified in their decision, with his stock likely to rise.

"The potential is there. If he can kick on, then he could potentially be worth a lot more than that," Mike continued.

"I think it was probably a worthwhile gamble to reject it at this point. Let's see how he gets on in their B team and then see how the summer goes."

On the surface of it, it might seem that Birmingham's decision to reject a £5m bid for a player who has barely made a mark on senior football was wild.

However, after a handful of games for Brentford's B team, they will be feeling justified in their decision, with Donovan already making his mark.