Birmingham City have had a frustrating campaign so far, with them needing a big 2026 to achieve their ambitions.
Birmingham City came out of League One with great expectations. They built a team that they believed would be ready to compete in the Championship straight away after winning the third tier title as record breakers.
However, halfway through, BCFC is 15th in the rankings. They are winless in five games and the pressure is increasing on head coach Chris Davies.
The Blues have had their moments, but a constant problem has been the striker position. Jay Stansfield was effectively behind number nine on his return to the Championship, but none of Marvin Ducksch, Kyogo Furuhashi or Lyndon Dykes have shown the form needed to inspire a push up the order.
In the summer it felt like losing to Ipswich Town in pursuit of Chuba Akpom could be a sliding door moment. However, Birmingham City may have dodged an expensive bullet there.
Birmingham City’s failed summer pursuit of Chuba Akpom
The Akpom saga was full of twists and turns in the transfer window. He was on the verge of leaving Ajax but there were reversals as Birmingham City were on the verge of completing a deal before dropping out, and the former Middlesbrough talisman on the way to Ipswich Town.
The 29-year-old joined the Tractor Boys on an initial loan with an obligation to buy if they win promotion. Akpom will cost 7 million euros if Town can return to the Premier League.
Promotion is not a given for Ipswich, who have recovered from a poor start and sit in third place.
Akpom was expected to play a key role in a successful side at Portman Road. But whether as a forward or attacking midfield, he has been unable to rediscover the form that made him a hit at Middlesbrough and has struggled for minutes as a result.
Chuba Akpom’s form would not have helped the Birmingham City striker’s struggles
Akpom has made 18 appearances for Ipswich Town, including just six starts. In that time he scored just once and notched one assist.
Ipswich Town stats from Chuba Akpom
| Goals | Assists | Minutes played |
| 1 | 1 | 673 |
Of course, there is no guarantee he would have encountered such problems at Birmingham City. Perhaps at this point he could have formed a good partnership with Stansfield and fired the Blues into the promotion battle.
Ultimately, though, he didn’t show the levels that made BCFC feel like they missed out by not landing him. Granted, Furuhashi and Ducksch didn’t score the required goals, but neither did Akpom.
Birmingham City will have to decide in January whether they want to tackle this. A new striker could mean the difference between bottoming out in the mid-table or reaching the top six, but it would mean a kind of acceptance that two expensive signings did not work out.
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