Birmingham City should consider cut-price swoop for Reading FC striker: Opinion | OneFootball

Highlights

The financial situation at Reading FC is worsening, and even though players and staff have been paid for the month of September, there are still worries when it comes to the overall funding of the club going forward.

Following struggles in getting his money out of the country of China, Royals owner Dai Yongge missed a deadline to deposit 125 per cent of the club's forecasted September wage bill into an account as part of an independent commission's ruling against him, meaning Ruben Selles' side were deducted a further three points from their League One tally.

The Spaniard is doing his best in difficult circumstances at the Select Car Leasing Stadium, but the worst could be yet to come in the form of player sales.

As per a report from The Athletic, club staff have been 'braced' for players to be sold ahead of the January transfer window in a bid to raise funds, in which individuals would stay at the Royals until the start of 2024 but cash made from the deals would go into Reading's bank immediately.

That seems to be the only way as to how Yongge is going to claw any money back from the club before a potential takeover, and one of the players that could attract some attention is striker Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan.

Who is Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan?

A product of the Royals' youth academy, Ehibhatiomhan signed his first professional deal just over two years ago but was only given his first chance in league action in the 2022-23 season when thrown in for his Championship debut off the bench in August against Cardiff.

Having scored his first professional goal in the same month in an EFL Cup clash with Stevenage, Ehibhatiomhan didn't really feature much until the back end of the season, and in just his fifth Championship outing he bagged an equaliser against Preston North End in April 2023.

Ehibhatiomhan would get chances under caretaker boss Noel Hunt from the start and he is now playing a big part under Selles in the 2023-24 season in League One, scoring five goals in 10 matches in all competitions.

The 20-year-old's contract is believed to expire at the end of the 2023-24 season, and his performances are bound to attract the attention of Championship clubs, especially with Reading's current situation - and that should include Birmingham City.

Why would Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan be a good signing for Birmingham?

Looking at their current striking options, Birmingham aren't exactly spoilt for options - especially ones that have their best years ahead of them.

Jay Stansfield is of course on loan from Fulham and doesn't always play as a central striker anyway, whilst both Scott Hogan and Lukas Jutkiewicz are in their 30's and will not get any better.

It's clear that head coach John Eustace is lacking real depth in that area, and the arrival of a younger, powerful striker to one day replace Jutkiewicz may be a smart move.

Ehibhatiomhan's height - standing at 6 ft 3 in tall - would make you think he is an out and out target man, but that isn't exactly the case at all.

For a player of his stature, Ehibhatiomhan possesses good short-distance pace and he has showed that on multiple occasions for the Royals, and Birmingham are already showing in the Championship that they could do with a game-changer off the bench that offers something different to what they already have.

And with Reading's situation being increasingly desperate in terms of their financial state, a cut-price figure may need to be agreed - especially when you take into consideration Ehibhatiomhan's contract situation with less than a year remaining.

The smartest investment that Birmingham's relatively new American ownership could make therefore is that of Ehibhatiomhan - a deal could get done relatively quickly for the youngster to arrive in January and he has the raw tools to be developed into a quality striker.