Birmingham have received a double boost after Jude Bellingham’s younger brother signed his first pro deal to stay with them as the club’s takeover inches closer.
Prospective City owners Paul Richardson and Maxi Lopez are close to announcing their new plans to redevelop St Andrews as part of their vision for the club and they will fight to keep boss John Eustace if Huddersfield step up their interest in the Blues boss.
Championship rivals Town are considering a shock move for Eustace if they fail to land their top target David Wagner. The Terriers want to bring former boss Wagner back to the club after sacking Danny Schofield after one win from nine games in charge.
Wagner is out of work since leaving Swiss club Young Boys in March this year and is favourite for the role. He is still held in high regard by the Yorkshire club for guiding them to the Premier League in 2017 and keeping them there until leaving in 2019. But negotiations over a return to the John Smith’s Stadium have been protracted which has left Huddersfield’s head of football operations Leigh Bromby also considering a move for Eustace, who has only been at Birmingham since July.
Bromby, 42, previously played with Eustace ,42, at Watford and has been following his start to full-time management at Birmingham. Eustace has picked up seven points from his last three games and has been a hit with fans and the club’s prospective owners Richardson and ex-Argentine striker Lopez, who have agreed a deal to buy-out the club’s Far East owners. The pair have put down a deposit and are waiting for EFL approval to proceed with a £35million deal spread over two years. The pair, who have faced questions over their funding, are said to remain confident of getting control at St Andrews and are working on plans, to be made public soon, to redevelop the club’s ground, parts of which are still closed on safety grounds.
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They have also been pictured with Blues technical director Craig Gardner, who brought in Tahith Chong and Hannibal Mejbri last month from Manchester United in a double transfer coup. This week there was another boost for the club as England ace Bellingham’s younger brother Jobe signed his first professional contract. The attacking midfielder has put pen to paper with City on his 17th birthday on Friday September 23 after the deal was initially agreed in July. Bellingham made his first team debut in the FA Cup last season against Plymouth Argyle, aged 16, and went on to make two further substitute appearances under former boss Lee Bowyer.
He has since played four more times for the club this term, including making his first start against Norwich City in the Carabao Cup. Bellingham, who was named in the first team squad as a 15-year-old, recently scored a brace in the Under-21s 5-0 victory over Colchester United. Bellingham is currently away on international duty, representing England Under-18s as they take on the Netherlands, the Faroe Islands and Belgium in the Pinatar Cup being held in Spain.
