How Phil Neumann is getting on at Hannover 96 since striking Birmingham City agreement | OneFootball

FLW looks how Blues' upcoming summer recruit has performed since agreeing a deal back in January

Compared to their summer business, it was a relatively quiet January transfer window for Birmingham City.

The microscope had firmly been placed on Blues after Knighthead Capital Management backed Chris Davies with a raft of new signings during his maiden transfer window at St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park, whilst also seeing plenty leave through the exit door, such as Jordan James.

As Birmingham were already firmly in the box-seat to earn a first-time promotion back to the Championship after a first spell in League One since the double-winning season of 1994/95, Davies and his recruitment team were extremely savvy in the winter market, bringing the experienced defensive duo of Grant Hanley and Myung-Jae Lee to fill in stop-gaps in defence for the remainder of the season, whilst Kieran Dowell also joined on loan from Rangers.

The league leaders also started to plan ahead for next season, exercising a reported £1.5m clause in Taylor-Gardner Hickman's contract to acquire the versatile performer from Bristol City on a three-year deal, whilst right-back Alfons Sampsted also confirmed that he will be staying in B9 for the long-term.

However, the most notable piece of business was that Blues were able to strike a pre-contract agreement for Hannover 96 centre-back Phil Neumann, with the deal being confirmed on January 17th after the club saw a £3.4m offer for the German dismissed in the summer.

It's been just over two months since the pre-contract agreement was confirmed, and FLW has looked at how the 27-year-old has fared for 'Die Roten' since then.

Phil Neumann has continued to perform for Hannover 96 amid Birmingham City controversy

It was initially reported that Blues hoped to acquire Neumann's services and integrate him straight into the squad for the remainder of the season, before confirmation of his pre-contract agreement was sent into the public ether on January 17th.

This sparked a whole host of controversies from the 2.Bundesliga side's perspective, with the third-tier side confirming the agreement an hour after a 1-0 victory against Jahn Regensburg, leading to Hannover posting a club statement on the matter.

The Saxony-based side's Sporting Director, Marcus Mann subsequently took aim at the West Midlands outfit for their actions, although it was stated that Blues had no obligation to inform Neumann's current employers of such plans.

“Why on match day of all times? That doesn't make sense to me. The English way is not okay. And that doesn’t make communication any easier. We won’t let an English third division team dictate what to do," he stated via BILD.

Despite picking up 12 points out of a possible 24, Hannover's position in the race for a place in the Bundesliga has slightly cascaded, falling from fourth place to sixth, winning just two games against FC Nuremberg and Schalke by a 2-1 scoreline away from home.

According to Sofascore ratings, Neumann has been the joint-sixth strongest performer at the Niedersachsenstadion throughout his 25 appearances in the league, and has only not featured in 104 minutes of the club's season across both domestic competitions.

Following their recent success at Schalke, the 6"2 defender also took to Instagram for the first time since his pending departure to St Andrew's @ Knighthead Park was confirmed, with the translation stating: About last night +3 ✅ Thanks for the numerous support on site ⚫️⚪️🔵 #niemalsallein"

Where Phil Neumman could slot in at Birmingham City

Given Neumann's current exploits and overall progression with the fallen giants in Germany, the deal will be viewed as yet another major coup for Blues, and they will hope the imposing centre-back can emulate Christoph Klarer's success in Royal Blue, with the Austrian becoming a fans' favourite during his first season at the club.

Klarer has formed two strong partnerships at the heart of defence - initially with Krystian Bielik and, secondly, with Ben Davies - and has adapted significantly well to both, whilst there is an understandable clamour for the former Preston and Liverpool man to strike a permanent agreement of his own, having initially joined on a temporary basis from Rangers.

Given the initial fee which Birmingham were looking to part with in the summer, it is obvious that Neumann wouldn't be moving across Europe for the purpose of adding squad depth, which then presents Davies with a potential dilemma in terms of recruitment.

However, this deal could significantly impact the immediate futures of Bielik and Dion Sanderson, with Stoke City holding previous interest in the club captain, whilst the £2m recruit of July 2023 is currently on loan at Blackburn Rovers, having fallen down the pecking order in the Second City.