Birmingham City could receive a lucrative sum of money this summer should Jobe Bellingham complete a move away from the Stadium of Light, according to reports.
The Blues are set for a busy summer window ahead, one which will require an overhaul of the playing staff following relegation from the Championship a few weeks ago. New head coach Alex Neil will be tasked with putting together a squad capable of earning promotion straight back to the second tier but may lose some key players in the process as the club deals with the financial repercussions of dropping down a division.
Ex-Birmingham City Man Set For New Role With League Two Outfit
The West Midlands outfit will have one of the largest budgets in League One next season but this doesn’t guarantee success from the get-go. Many teams have languished for years in the third division after relegation, including Portsmouth, who spent 12 years in League One, Sunderland and even Ipswich Town.
However, Birmingham City may be boosted in their summer plans by the sale of Bellingham. It has been reported over the past week that the 18-year-old has garnered interest from clubs in the Premier League, including Crystal Palace, Newcastle United and Southampton, while European champions Real Madrid have also kept close tabs on his progress on Wearside in recent months.
Sunderland are said to be holding out for £12 million to let him leave but the goalscoring midfielder still has three years remaining on his contract so the Black Cats could potentially ask for much more. Furthermore, The Daily Mail are claiming that Birmingham will be due a 15% sell-on fee from any sale of Bellingham – a stipulation they inserted into his contract last summer when he left the club for merely £3 million.
Writer’s View
Should Bellingham be sold for £12 million, as has been reported over the past few weeks, then Birmingham City can expect a cash windfall of around £2 million which could rise should he be sold for more than that figure.
This can only benefit the club in terms of keeping within English football’s financial rules and will help offset a lot of costs that relegation from the Championship will now bring. This figure may also give Neil a little more wiggle room in the upcoming transfer market.
Deputy Head of Writing
