He's a Dowell upgrade: Birmingham make offer to sign "unplayable" EFL star
da dobrowin： Birmingham City are preparing to build a squad that is ready to compete at the top end of the Championship in the upcoming summer transfer window.
da bet nacional： The Blues won League One with a staggering 111 points under Chris Davies, who arrived at St. Andrew’s last summer, and are now looking to compete for promotion to the Premier League.
They are already reportedly making moves to bolster their playing squad ahead of a return to the second tier, with a League One star said to be on their radar.
Birmingham make offer to League One star
According to GIVEMESPORT, Birmingham have submitted a contract offer to Peterborough United forward Kwame Poku, whose deal with the Posh is due to expire at the end of next month.
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The report claims that Blues director of football Craig Gardner has put the offer across to the player’s agents in a meeting on Zoom, as they aim to complete a deal for the winger amid stiff competition for his signature.
It reveals that there are up to 26 teams interested in a swoop for the 23-year-old starlet, including Celtic, Rangers, Sheffield United, and Sunderland, which shows that Birmingham will not find it easy to snap him up.
If the Blues can win the race for his services, though, then they could find an upgrade on Kieran Dowell, who returned to Rangers after his loan spell in the second half of the season.
Why Kwame Poku would be an upgrade on Kieran Dowell
The Ghana international primarily plays as a left-footed forward on the right of a front three, which is not dissimilar to the position that Dowell played during his time at St. Andrew’s – playing centrally or on the right of the attacking midfield trio.
The Rangers loanee produced an impressive haul of five goals and four assists in 19 appearances in League One, which came after he failed to deliver a single goal or assist in 12 Premiership games for the Scottish giants in the first half of the season.
Poku, however, could provide even more quality than the former Norwich City midfielder if the Blues can wrap up a deal to sign him at the end of his Peterborough contract.
The Ghana international’s performances in League One in the 2023/24 and 2024/25 campaigns suggest that he could offer more as both a scorer and a creator of goals on the right flank, cutting in on his left foot.
Kwame Poku (League One)
23/24
24/25
Appearances
37
27
Goals
11
12
Big chances missed
11
3
Big chances created
10
9
Key passes per game
1.5
1.2
Assists
7
8
Stats via Sofascore
As you can see in the table above, Poku scored more than twice as many goals and provided twice as many assists in just eight more appearances than Dowell in the third tier.
This suggests that the Posh star, who was described as “unplayable” by manager Darren Ferguson, could be more impactful in the Championship next season as an attacking force.
Therefore, it could make more sense for Birmingham to continue to pursue Poku, as they appear to be doing with this latest report in mind, instead of attempting to sign Dowell on a permanent deal from Rangers.
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Of course, Davies may want more depth to his attacking options and could add Dowell as a squad option out wide and as a number ten, but Poku could arrive as a clear upgrade on him on the flank.