Birmingham City have signed Bright Osayi-Samuel - but there is one clear red flag | OneFootball

Birmingham City may have cause for concern over Bright Osayi-Samuel

Birmingham City recently confirmed the signing of Nigerian full-back Bright Osayi-Samuel.

The 27-year-old’s services were secured by Blues for free following the expiration of his contract with Turkish giants Fenerbahçe.

Osayi-Samuel moved to Istanbul in January 2021 after three strong years at QPR, working under managers such as Jorge Jesus and Jose Mourinho during his time on the continent.

Swapping the Champions League for the Championship, the Nigerian international has joined the exciting project that continues to snowball at St. Andrew’s and on the surface, looks to be a good deal for the Blues.

However, there is an underlying element that could concern the Birmingham City faithful.

Bright Osayi-Samuel’s inconsistent availability a concern for Birmingham City

Players with prior Championship experience are crucial for Chris Davies’ side next season if they are to continue their upward trajectory.

Osayi-Samuel has that in abundance from his four years at Loftus Road and should bolster Blues’ defence accordingly.

However, it doesn’t matter how good any player's CV is if they aren’t available on a consistent basis.

The 27-year-old has started only 10, 21 and 15 league games in the last three seasons, with a maximum of 1,750 minutes played. He missed 26 matches for Fenerbahçe over that time period due to injury, with recurring ankle issues a major area of concern.

His pace and power will no doubt be a valuable asset for Davies to harness, but staying fit must be of the utmost importance for Osayi-Samuel.

The Championship is a brutal league, and the best teams have players who are physically prepared to run an obscene distance over 90 minutes.

Birmingham’s new signing is coming from a division with 18 teams and therefore just 36 games played across a season.

Osayi-Samuel has already missed a fair portion of those fixtures in the past and will be expected to remain in contention for 10 more in the English second-tier.

There is no questioning the full-back’s talent – he has operated at a much higher level previously and will have the necessary quality to perform in the Championship.

However, it remains to be seen whether the physical demands of the second-tier prove too much for Blues’ new recruit.

Bright Osayi-Samuel will hope squad depth comes to his aid

Osayi-Samuel’s fitness issues are clear to see and will come as an area of concern for a lot of Birmingham City supporters. They don’t want their exciting new project to be scuppered by players who can’t perform across 46 games.

However, if managed correctly, the Nigerian defender could still prove to be a useful addition.

Davies and Co. will be well aware of their new signing’s drawbacks and should plan for them accordingly.

If the Birmingham boss distributes playing time evenly between Ethan Laird and Osayi-Samuel, it could help quell some of the latter’s fitness concerns.

Using Laird for more physically demanding fixtures whilst saving Osayi-Samuel for matches where an extra element of quality is needed could be an avenue that Blues take next term, to ensure they are getting the maximum out of their full-backs.