Birmingham City transfer latest as Blues 'keeping tabs' on highly-rated Brighton star - Sheffield Wednesday also keen

Wayne Rooney has a fortnight to wait until put his own stamp on the Birmingham City squad, however a new name has emerged in the meantime. Rooney, who was appointed Blues boss in October has had to work with the squad John Eustace and Craig Gardner has assembled, but next month will give him the chance to bring in players that that he has in mind.

According to sister website The Star, goalkeeper James Beadle is of interest to Birmingham City and Sheffield Wednesday. Blues are said to be 'keeping tabs' on him, and there have been suggestions that he could be recalled from his loan at Oxford United.

Beadle has been involved in every league game so far for Oxford this season, and has kept seven clean sheets in the 21 league matches he's featured in. He has already played in the FA Cup for Oxford, and so he would be unavailable for Birmingham or the Owls for their respective ties.

The 19-year-old joined the League One outfit on a season-long loan deal but as is the case with most loans is that the parent club does usually reserve the right to recall them at the half-way point of their loan. U's boss Des Buckingham was hopeful that because of the role that Beadle has in the team, the Seagulls would consider keeping him at the Kassam Stadium, however that is not a guarantee.

He said in an interview with BBC Radio Oxford on December 5: "Of course, we haven’t got too much control over that should they want to, but it’s about making sure when we look at recruitment and the work the recruitment team do, there’s succession planning and back-up plans.

“Should it happen, I’d like to think we’re as well-placed as we could be to make sure we cover ourselves quickly.”

News of Birmingham's interest does beg the question over the futures of both John Ruddy and Neil Etheridge. Ruddy has been Rooney's first-choice keeper, and has played in all 10 of the matches Rooney has overseen so far. He was the player-of-the-match for Blues in their defeat to Middlesbrough, and has kept clean sheets against Rotherham United and Cardiff City.

Etheridge and Ruddy are both out of contract at the end of the season, and should Birmingham be successful in their pursuit of Beadle then it would likely mean a departure for one of them. Birmingham already have four loan players too, and the maximum amount of loanees that a club can name in a match-day squad is five, and so that would fill their quota.