"I'd definitely be shocked" - Birmingham City promotion claim made amid favourites tag | OneFootball

FLW's Blues fan pundit has issued his say on the club's promotion chances

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…

Birmingham City head into the upcoming 2024/25 season with the weight of expectation on their shoulders.

Many ex-Premier League sides have fallen into the relegation trap door and into League One in recent times, such as Sunderland, Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United and Nottingham Forest.

However, none of those teams have been relegated from the Championship and gone into the forthcoming campaign oozing with optimism and belief, which is exactly what's occurring in B9 right now.

The Blues board were swift to appoint the highly-rated Chris Davies as Tony Mowbray's successor, and have since provided a war chest in terms of transfer fees for the former Tottenham and Leicester assistant to work with, amid reports of a £20m budget to strengthen the squad.

And so far, the business made in the transfer market and performances in pre-season, with their latest encounter a 2-1 victory over Rangers, showing the hallmarks of a side set to take the third tier by storm.

Birmingham City's promotion chances assessed

Similarly to a large proportion of Bluenoses, FLW's Birmingham City fan pundit, Mike Gibbs, believes it will be a major disappointment if a first-time promotion back to the second tier cannot be achieved, especially when factoring in the transfer business, infrastructure changes and mood surrounding the club at the present moment.

"I think I'd definitely be shocked if we didn't get promoted," Gibbs declared. "I'd be particularly disappointed as well."

"I think if you look at the investment into the playing squad, the coaching staff and new manager, the money that's gone into the pitch, stadium and services, you cannot argue at all that the owners are doing all they possibly can to get us promoted."

"All that investment I don't think is to just get us promoted out of League One," he continued. "I think it's part of a much bigger strategy to move the club forward and, essentially, get us to being a Premier League club again."

"After all the investment, the manager getting backed, I think it would be a huge disappointment and failing if we weren't to get promoted this year."

"I think it will be tough to win the league," Gibbs stated. "It's always tough. It's a long season with lots of ups and down's. There's some really strong clubs in this league as well - the relegated clubs and the likes of Bolton and Charlton who will be pushing as well."

"I think it'll be tough, but we are favourites."

Birmingham City's current squad and transfer dealings

Many would say that even before any adjustments were made, a side of Birmingham's stature and players would be made promotion favourites for this upcoming campaign.

But, the transfer dealings and circulating rumours make the Second City outfit almost compete in a completely different ballpark altogether in terms of who they are able to attract and the estimated/reported fees being brandished out so far this summer.

Davies filled the void left by the departing John Ruddy and Neil Etheridge with two solid acquisitions between the posts, as boyhood Bluenose Ryan Allsop joined from Hull City alongside Burnley's Bailey Peacock-Farrell.

A defence which conceded 65 goals last term has been boosted with the additions of Hearts' highly-rated full-back Alex Cochrane and Austrian defender Christoph Klarer, who featured 30 times in the Bundesliga for FC Darmstadt last season, joining for an estimated €4.15m.

Two further standout additions have been made in the middle of the park in the form of Brighton's Marc Leonard, who was sought-after by many domestic and continental sides after excelling on loan at Northampton, with Blues acquiring his services for a bargain price of £500,000.

His arrival falls alongside illum Þór Willumsson, who registered 20 goal contributions across two seasons for Eredivisie outfit, Go Ahead Eagles and winger Emil Hansson, formerly of Heracles Almedo.

And even though Alfie May reportedly cost just £750,000 in comparison to some of the aforementioned fees, the signing of League One's most potent goal threat, with 66 goals across three seasons for Charlton and Cheltenham Town, his signing so far perhaps represents the best piece of business in the entire division, as well as reports of a potential £6m fee being garnered for the permanent signature of Jay Stansfield.

Stansfield was the source of 12 Championship goals for Blues last term, and understandably remains of interest to second tier sides given his quality, but it once again highlights the ambition and pulling power at St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park that such outlandish fees for third tier standard are even being mooted at this stage.

And yes, whilst there are no guarantees in football, particularly given how a number of sides have failed to live up to the expectations placed on themselves internally and externally, it would be a major shock to many if Birmingham weren't promotion winners in May, as they look to fulfill their well-publicised long-term ambitions.