West Brom ‘threatened’ by Leeds United as Birmingham City face Sunderland fight for £2m signing

Birmingham City will reportedly face competition from Sunderland this summer for key transfer target Dion Sanderson. John Eustace has made it clear he would love to have the centre back at St Andrew’s on a permanent basis after two successful loan spells, but the Black Cats are also in the fight.

Having spent 18 months with Blues over the last season and a half, Sanderson has already settled in very well and is a respected member of the first-team squad. Not only that but was a vital component of Eustace’s defensively-efficient Birmingham unit with 31 Championship appearances to his name throughout 2022-23.

Sanderson has now returned to parent club Wolverhampton Wanderers and a decision about his long-term future is expected to be made soon. According to a report from Alan Nixon on Patreon, Birmingham are so eager to have Sanderson permanently that they’ve already “tabled a seven-figure offer”.

It’s previously been widely claimed that Wolves would accept a bid in the region of £2 million, so even if Blues’ initial approach isn’t that high of a figure it likely wouldn’t take long for an agreement to be found. Sunderland could scupper things, however, as The Mirror, via Sunderland Echo reports Tony Mowbray’s side are also “interested”.

The Black Cats are another of the four clubs Sanderson has played on loan for - joined by Blues, Cardiff City and Queens Park Rangers - as he played 27 times for the Stadium of Light outfit during the 2020-21 season. Just like with Birmingham, Sanderson was a very popular figure in the northeast and their fans would likely approve the transfer.

Meanwhile, West Brom ‘threatened’ by exit clause

In other West Midlands football news, Blues’ local rivals West Bromwich Albion are reportedly at threat of an approach for Carlos Corberan amid Leeds United’s search for a new manager. Sam Allardyce’s time at Elland Road didn’t work out as the Lilywhites were relegated from the Premier League and now they’ll need a new face to fill the void.

The Daily Mail reports Corberan “has admirers” at Leeds from his time there as an Under-23s head coach and that “he signed a new contract at West Brom earlier this year but it has a release clause”. This means the Baggies would be fairly powerless if Leeds were to offer the undisclosed amount that’ll activate this said clause. It would then be entirely up to Corberan.

The Spaniard was vital to Albion’s success during the 2022-23 season as he soared the club all the way from 24th position to a late play-off push. The fight for the top six went down to the final day of the campaign – something West Brom fans would’ve bitten your hand off for when Steve Bruce was in charge, delivering dreadful results.

Losing Corberan would be a huge blow to all at The Hawthorns, especially with plenty of uncertainty around the ownership, loans to be repaid, and a lack of transfer funds for the summer. Even with the strong connection Corberan has made with West Brom’s supporters in a short space of time, it’d be tough to turn down a Leeds approach.