Dembele in: Is this the best Birmingham City XI currently at John Eustace's disposal? | OneFootball

Birmingham City have already made a decent number of signings, as John Eustace looks to build on a productive first season at St Andrew's.

Although they have used the loan market quite a lot in recent years, all of their signings this summer have been permanent ones and that will help Blues in their quest to build for the long term.

They have been able to afford these signings because of Jobe Bellingham's sale, the money generated from Jude Bellingham's move to Real Madrid and the introduction of new owners, who will surely be looking to get the Midlands side back to the Premier League sooner rather than later.

With five signings in so far, plenty more look set to follow in the coming months with a number of positions still needing to be addressed.

Which formation would suit Birmingham City the best at the moment?

Having a sufficient amount of depth in all areas will give Birmingham the best chance of being successful, but they don't have that many central defenders at their disposal right now.

This is why they will probably need to operate with a back four for now - and depending on where Siriki Dembele and Tyler Roberts play - another central striker or two may also be required.

A 4-2-3-1 formation may be a good fit for Blues' current squad.

Is this the best Birmingham City XI currently at John Eustace's disposal?

After a solid 2022/23 campaign, John Ruddy has to start between the sticks ahead of Neil Etheridge, who is also a very good keeper. It wouldn't be a surprise if the latter moves on this summer though.

With the likes of George Friend and Auston Trusty leaving, Emmanuel Longelo is their only real option at left-back - and new signing Ethan Laird starts on the right following Maxime Colin and Jordan Graham's departures.

In central defence, they desperately need options but they do have Kevin Long, Marc Roberts, Nico Gordon and Krystian Bielik as potential options. Long and Roberts get the nod over the more inexperienced Gordon, but the latter will be backing himself to play regularly next season.

In midfield, Bielik will start there when he returns from his injury setback and although Ivan Sunjic is available as an option, Juninho Bacuna may be a better option as someone who can be an asset both defensively and offensively.

His runs could help Birmingham get into the final third quickly and more effectively, with his role in a deeper area allowing four dangerous attackers to start ahead of him.

Dembele could operate up top but has often played on the wing and could be an asset there. His 11 goals and 12 assists in 42 league appearances for Peterborough United during 2020/21 shows just how much of a threat he could be.

Fellow summer signing Tyler Roberts, meanwhile, starts in an attacking midfield role with Koji Miyoshi getting a chance to shine on the right-hand side.

Although Roberts could start up front, Scott Hogan deserves the chance to lead the line after scoring 10 league goals in 37 appearances last season. Also scoring 10 times during 2021/22, he has been a reasonably consistent scorer in the past couple of years.