Wagner could seal dream signing for Klarer at Birmingham in January

Birmingham City will be looking to make it an unbelievable ten wins from 13 League One games this coming weekend when Northampton Town travel to St. Andrew’s.

The Blues have taken to the tricky division with ease, helped by Blues owner Tom Wagner giving Chris Davies plenty to spend in the summer, leading to the incomings of Jay Stansfield, Willum Thor Willumsson and many more who have all gone on to be dependable first-team performers for their manager in their new surroundings.

Away from the flashy attackers at his disposal, however, Davies also has a staunch defence courtesy of some more summer transfer activity, with Christoph Klarer proving to be an instant hit after arriving from Germany.

Klarer’s form this season

Klarer has been a near ever-present member of Birmingham’s back four since joining from SV Darmstadt 98, with the 6 foot 3 centre-back imposing himself onto games as a dominant force in the air having played 90 minutes across every league game besides the opening day against Reading.

Amazingly, the brand new Blues number four has averaged seven successful duels per League One match since making England his home, with the 24-year-old also collecting three clean sheets from the 11 third-tier matches he has participated in.

His display last time out in the FA Cup away at non-league Sutton United ensured the Blues didn’t fall victim to an unwanted Cup upset, as the Austrian star won eight duels across the course of the 90 minutes to help his team pick up a 1-0 win, whilst also dictating play out from the back as a calm customer with 107 touches accumulated.

Birmingham could now be prepared to shop back in Germany for more defensive recruits this January, therefore, with a move potentially back on for a rumoured target who would shine alongside Klarer in the heart of defence.

Birmingham could seal dream signing for Klarer

According to a report by Football Insider over the weekend, the League One table toppers are preparing a new and improved offer for Hannover star Phil Neumann in January, after having a £3.4m bid knocked back by the 2. Bundesliga club in the summer.

Klarer will be familiar with Neumann, having played in the same country as the Hannover man for various years before he moved onto Birmingham, with the 27-year-old also a similar style of player at the back compared to the Blues titan.

Glancing at the table above, it’s clear both defenders excel equally as ball-playing defenders as much as they pride themselves on their basics, with Neumann putting in similar numbers to Klarer when it comes to interceptions, ball recoveries and clearances as well as accurate passes per 90 minutes.

But, the wanted Hannover ace does boast double the number of clean sheets as his Birmingham counterpart, with a mightily impressive four shut outs collected across his last five league appearances.

Davies would love to win the services of Neumann this coming transfer window, therefore, with this move potentially making Birmingham even more solid at the back as promotion is hunted down.

There’s no doubting the spending power that Birmingham have with Wagner as their chairman, as the American begins to contemplate more statement purchases like this one to ensure promotion is sealed convincingly with no hiccups worrying the current league leaders.