Birmingham City player should prioritise European outfit over Nottingham Forest and Leicester City: View | OneFootball

Birmingham City's Jordan James should be prioritising Atalanta over Premier League teams this summer.

Birmingham City will be looking to find a quick resolution this summer over the future of midfielder Jordan James.

The Blues are expected to be quite busy over the coming months as they try to put together a squad good enough to get them out of League One at the first time of asking.

Chris Davies has been given the task of meeting that aim, and the former Tottenham Hotspur coach would ideally like to be able to call upon James in this 2024/25 season.

However, the midfielder’s future has been up for discussion for a long time now, and it seems inevitable that an exit is on the cards given Birmingham City’s relegation.

The latest on Jordan James’ Birmingham City future

James could be described as Birmingham City’s biggest asset at this moment in time, and while they would love to keep him beyond this transfer window, that seems unlikely given the mounting interest.

It was reported not so long ago that West Ham United and Leicester City are monitoring the player’s situation at Birmingham.

Meanwhile, it has been claimed by The Telegraph that Nottingham Forest have also joined the race as they also look to add a promising, internationally-capped talent to their squad.

The Premier League trio will feel their chances of signing the Welsh international are high, given that they can offer Premier League football.

However, for several months now, Serie A side Atalanta have been heavily linked with the player, with reports suggesting that they have seen bids rejected in the past.

Then, at the end of May, it was reported that the Europa League winners were ready to make James their first signing of the summer.

Interest is very strong in the player, and he has plenty of options to choose from, but it should be Atalanta that is the priority for James at this stage of his career.

Jordan James should be focusing on Atalanta amid Premier League interest

Jordan James has really risen to the occasion in the last 12 to 18 months at Birmingham City, with his performances making him one of their key players.

The 19-year-old broke onto the scene in the 2021/22 season, playing 20 times in the Championship for the Blues, but that was just the start for the player.

In the 2022/23 season, James would go on to play 33 times in the league as well as appearing in cup competitions.

Then last season, his importance went up another level, as he played in all but four league games and scored an impressive eight goals.

Birmingham have still at times been patient with James, as shown by him starting just 25 of the 42 league games he played, with him averaging just 56 minutes per game.

The Welshman outperformed his xG, which was at 4.23, and he could have potentially had more than eight goals to his name, given that he averaged a shot a game and missed two big chances, as per Sofascore.com.

As the seasons go on, James becomes more and more important for the Blues, but even if Birmingham had stayed in the Championship, it seemed difficult for them to keep the player. But now that they are in League One, it seems near impossible.

James still has a few years left to run on his current contract, so if he is going to move, it will be about which club pays the amount of money that Birmingham sees as fair. While that is out of the hands of the midfielder, he should be focusing on trying to get a move to Atalanta instead of joining any of the interested Premier League teams.

This is because the Serie A side has been genuine about their interest from the start; they are clearly long-term admirers of the player, and they are obviously keen on making him a part of their team.

Furthermore, they can offer him something these other teams can’t, and this is not just European football but Champions League football.

Playing in the Premier League may be a big thing for James, but he needs to make sure he keeps playing football wherever he moves to this summer. Therefore, you do wonder if his opportunities may be limited at these sides, as they may see the player as someone for the future or may not think he is ready for regular starts yet at that level.

It is not every day a British player like James gets the chance to go and play abroad and play in the Champions League, but James has.

The 19-year-old should look at what Jude Bellingham did when he left Birmingham City and follow in his footsteps by creating a name for himself in Europe and developing himself into an even better player.

He is still very young in his development, and the chances are he will likely get an opportunity to play in the Premier League later in his career, so he should be looking at Atalanta as his preferred destination should he leave the Blues.