Birmingham City transfer news: Chris Davies, Dion Sanderson replacement, Romelle Donovan plan | OneFootball

Football League World rounds up the latest transfer news at Birmingham City

Birmingham City spent lavishly in the summer transfer window and have therefore headed into January with considerably less pressure than their promotion-chasing counterparts, with high-profile acquisitions such as Jay Stansfield, Tomoki Iwata, Christoph Klarer and Alfie May having all hit the ground running in League One this season.

Knighthead's significant and ambitious summer investment is paying dividends, of course, with Blues currently on track to lift the third-tier title come the end of the campaign. That's no real surprise considering the gravity of their investment and the strength of the playing squad, and although they are just two points ahead of second-placed Wycombe Wanderers, they do have the advantage of two games in hand over the Chairboys.

Chris Davies perhaps won't be intending to undertake a frantically busy month, then, but we could well see further fresh faces heading to St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park along with some departures.

With that in mind, Football League World has rounded up the latest transfer news involving the League One leaders...

Chris Davies confirms Birmingham City are in the market for Dion Sanderson replacement

Birmingham sanctioned their first exit of the month by allowing out-of-favour defender Dion Sanderson to head back up to the Championship and join promotion hopefuls Blackburn Rovers on loan for the remainder of the campaign.

Sanderson, who captained Blues last season, had found minutes difficult to come by in League One despite being a regular for a number of seasons at Championship level. The 25-year-old played just 92 minutes of league football before heading up to Ewood Park, where he will be hoping to play regularly under ex-Birmingham boss John Eustace.

Sanderson had effectively been the side's fourth-choice central defensive option behind Klarer, Krystian Bielik and Ben Davies, meaning an exit always felt on the cards.

Davies has now confirmed the club will be in the market for a new defender to provide the strength in depth that had been offered by Sanderson, whom he allowed to leave the West Midlands in search of increased game time.

The 39-year-old said: "I said to Dion that ultimately he wants more game time and as the season went on he wasn’t going to get that here as one of our first choice centre-backs, so if the right opportunity came up for him to go and play then we would look into that.

"That’s why he’s gone. Absolutely, that’s something we will need (a new defender)."

Dion Sanderson drops John Eustace revelation after Blackburn Rovers switch

Unsurprisingly, considering his history of working under Eustace with both Blues and at QPR alongside the struggle for regular match minutes in English football's third tier, Sanderson - by his own admission - jumped at the opportunity to trade the Second City for Ewood Park.

Sanderson explained his delight to have signed for Blackburn to local BBC radio, stating that he "didn't have to think about anything" after learning of interest from Eustace's side.

The ex-Wolves defender said: "I had my first session on Monday and I settled in really well. The boys are really loving, caring and look out for each other. The manager and his staff I've obviously known for quite a while now, so it's nothing I'm not used to.

"It all happened quite quickly. I'd just come back in from training and I looked at my phone. There was a message from my agent to say Blackburn were interested. Straight away I was just like 'get me down there'. I didn't have to think about anything.

"As soon as I heard about the interest the gaffer called me to talk about the club, the players, the ambition and what he wants to achieve. It rang alarms in my head. I was ready, I was buzzing that there was interest and I am just glad and happy to have got it over the line.

Sanderson also opened up on his relationship with Eustace, whom he first played under when the current Blackburn boss was on QPR's coaching staff before later reuniting at Blues. Like many, Sanderson was left with shock at Eustace's controversial dismissal from Birmingham last season, which has been widely attributed to their relegation after he was - albeit briefly - replaced by Wayne Rooney.

"I've got nothing but good memories under John," he added. "The time he was at Blues, we had a strong half-season and he built that connection with the players, even the lads who weren't playing felt involved.

"We were just all one, all together, us versus everyone and we loved it as players.

"It was quite a shock when he was sacked. It was quite upsetting as well for some of the players around the building, but it's football and it's just another day in the business, I guess. I'm glad to be reunited with him. He's a great person. Tactically he's great, he works with what he's got. He's really ambitious and dedicated to his job."

Elsewhere, Blues are running the rule over the next course of action for young prospect Romelle Donovan, who returned to the club in December from a difficult loan spell with Burton Albion.

Donovan, who only turned 18 at the end of November, started just once in the league for the bottom-placed Brewers and is unlikely to challenge for first-team contention under Davies just yet.

But Donovan is still held in extremely high regard at Birmingham, and they intend on ensuring the next immediate step in his career is a positive one, whether that means remaining in the building or heading back out on loan.

Of Donovan, Davies told BirminghamLive: "We’re still speaking to Romelle and his support network around what’s the best next step for him because he’s a talented player who has come through the academy, we have a duty of care towards him to get it right and get his future right.