West Bromwich Albion join transfer battle for Birmingham City player | OneFootball

Birmingham City star Jordan James has attracted a host of interest this month, with West Bromwich Albion the latest club reportedly interested in the youngster, following some impressive displays in a less-than-impressive Blues side this season.

The Wales international burst onto the scene this season in the Birmingham midfield, becoming a key part of a side that had to contend with three different managers before Christmas.

Former boss John Eustace was sacked in October to make way for former England international Wayne Rooney, whose poor performances saw the club slide from the top six and into a battle against relegation.

He was replaced by former Sunderland boss Tony Mowbray in December, hopefully ending the Blues manager merry-go-round for the rest of the season at least.

Mowbray has managed to steady the ship somewhat and a recent win over Stoke City sees the side 20th in the Championship, hovering eight points clear of the drop zone.

Despite the turmoil behind the scenes, James has been a consistent performer in the midfield this season, and is rightly drawing praise from clubs at home and abroad.

West Brom are the latest side linked with Jordan James

While interest from the Premier League and Serie A seemed the most enticing for James, the Welshman has also received interest from Championship side West Brom, according to the latest reports.

Corriere Della Sera reported (via SportWitness) that West Brom are the latest club expressing interest in the young Welshman, who has been likened to current Atalanta star Martin De Roon, as a move away from St Andrews grows more and more likely.

The Baggies are looking for a new midfielder this move, with Newcastle United's Isaac Hayden also linked with the club on a loan transfer.

With the recent news that midfielder Jayson Molumby will miss the next three months of the season due to injury, it seems imperative that West Brom must get in another midfielder if they want to continue their push for promotion this season.

James would likely only move away from Birmingham on a transfer deal, and with the prices currently being touted for his services, the Baggies could be priced out the market by teams from the English and Italian top flights.

Atalanta are heavily linked but transfer dealings have stalled

Atalanta are the most heavily-linked club with James, and have reportedly been locked in transfer talks with Birmingham for some time now.

HITC have reported that a £10 million fee is enough to sign James in this window, which appears to be more than Atalanta are willing to pay for the young midfielder.

Italian publication La Gazzetta dello Sport (via Sport Witness), the two clubs have stalled in negotiations with one another, with the Blues reportedly annoyed by the slow negotiation style of the Italian side.

Despite James reportedly agreeing terms to sign with Atalanta, Birmingham are still far away from agreeing a deal with them. While the report claims that the Italian side are £4 million away from Birmingham's required fee, there seems to be no end in sight for current negotiations between the two.

This stall in transfer talks could give other linked clubs, such as West Brom, Newcastle or Fiorentina, the chance to move in and gazump Atalanta by agreeing a deal with Birmingham this month.

Albion seems a very unlikely destination at the moment given their financial issues, although if their proposed takeover goes through it would change the dynamics.

boss Tony Mowbray has noted that letting James go could help the club invest in other areas of the squad, to help better battle relegation from the Championship.