Birmingham City sign Fulham prodigy and Bundesliga defender in mega new January transfer window prediction
A big January transfer window could help fire a play-off push for Chris Davies
Birmingham City are making a much better fight in the Championship than their last few seasons in the second tier and with the aid of a successful January transfer window, they could even make a playoff push in 2026.
Their two best attackers so far this campaign have been permanent signings in the last two summers - Jay Stansfield and Demarai Gray - while Marvin Ducksch has also adapted impressively quickly to life in the top flight.
If The Blues can clear up their wretched away form and get some good fortune with injuries they’ll be a dark horse to push for the top six in the final months of the season, and bringing in some experience could certainly help on that front.
So to see if that could be on the horizon in B9, we fired up Football Manager 26 to look ahead to what January could hold.
Who could Birmingham City sign in January transfer window?
Kevin Akpoguma - 1.7m from Hoffenheim - The aggressive leader probably could’ve played in the Premier League earlier in his career but turning 30 in April, he’s likely missed his chance to jump across to the most lucrative division in the world. However, Akpoguma could almost certainly improve The Blues’ back line.
Josh King - loan from Fulham - It’s no exaggeration to say that if King was a permanent addition in B9 he could have a similar impact to either Bellingham brother. Fulham midfielder Josh King that is, not ex-Bournemouth striker Josh King who’s now terrorising Saudi Pro League defences for Al-Khaleej aged 33.
He made a storming start to the season and should’ve had his first Premier League goal - against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge no less. He’s still waiting for that maiden strike and has seen his game-time curtailed as the season’s wore on but it’d still be a massive surprise if Fulham were willing to part with him and a major coup for Birmingham to sign King.
Ruslan Malinovskyi - £400,000m from Genoa - with Jay Stansfield flying high in the Championship scoring charts, signing more goals isn’t a major need for The Blues in January. However, if they can sign such an established player at such a cheap price, they may struggle to say no. Aged 32 the Ukranian no spring chicken but he’s not over hill just yet and has netted twice in Serie A for Genoa in 2025/26.
Amin Nabizada - £375,000 from Watford - The 18-year-old attacker has only played 19 senior minutes of football for Watford so it’s impossible to tell if this would be a good investment.
Who could West Brom sell in January?
Tyrese Warmington - loan to Maidstone United - Having failed to play a single minute in the Premier League 2 or Premier League Cup so far, it makes sense for the goalkeeper to get farmed out.
Zaid Betteka - loan to Solihull Moors - Betteka has been more successful than Warmington in making age-group appearances but staying close to home while getting the opportunity to player senior football would be a win-win. Finally, teenage prospect Menzi Mazwi departs to Zimbabwean side Simba Bhora.