"Entice him with the project" - Birmingham City urged to beat Sunderland & Bristol City to Burnley transfer | OneFootball

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…

Burnley midfielder Scott Twine has been linked with a summer transfer away from Turf Moor this summer, with Birmingham City, Sunderland and Bristol City among the clubs contending for his signature, per Alan Nixon via Patreon.

The 24-year-old spent last season on loan with two separate Championship clubs, with the first half of the season being spent with Hull City, before ending the campaign as a Bristol City player.

Journalist Alan Nixon reports that Burnley will sell the attacking midfielder this summer, which would bring to an end his two-year spell as a Clarets player following his £4 million move from MK Dons back in 2022.

It remains to be seen just how much of that fee Burnley will be looking to recoup in any deal this summer, but with Birmingham City being one of the latest clubs to emerge in the Twine sweepstakes, Football League World investigates whether Blues can compete with Championship interest?

Birmingham fan pundit believes Blues should sell project to Twine

Football League World's Birmingham City fan pundit Mike Gibbs believes that because Blues face tough competition for his signature, the club must sell Twine their vision for the future to stand any realistic chance in securing his signature.

"Exactly the sort of player that we would want, I think it's a really, really exciting player to be linked with.

"Sunderland and Bristol City - it's not as if they were struggling at the wrong end of the Championship as well, I think two good clubs who can offer Championship football.

"We'd just have to entice him with the project that is Birmingham, but if we could get him in that would be an absolutely fantastic acquisition.

"I think the second point would be the fee, there's some numbers being banded about as low as £1.5m, and I think as high as £5m. If it's the former then fair enough, but if it's the latter, it's a hell of a lot of money, and I'm just not sure how realistic that is."

Scott Twine would be a huge statement of intent from Birmingham City

Scott Twine celebrates for Burnley

It's fair to say that Twine has proven himself as a player who is more than capable of playing well at Championship level.

So for Twine to potentially drop back down to League One - a division in which he has shone in before - would have to be seen as one of the larger coups of the summer transfer window by Birmingham.

20 goals and 13 assists in his last season as a League One player were the outstanding numbers that earned him a move to Burnley in the first place, and are a testament to his star ability in the third tier.

Therefore, if Birmingham were to seal his signature, it would be a huge statement of intent from the club that they are set on spending no more time in League One than they need to.

And should they achieve promotion next season, Twine would certainly be a player they could take into the Championship with no concerns over his ability to play at that level.

So, whilst Championship clubs will understandably be favourites to sign him, should Birmingham pull off a deal for Twine, they would instantly boost their promotion chances by a considerable margin.