Birmingham City will hope their label as being League One's biggest spenders by some distance doesn't come back to bite them at the end of the season, especially if they somehow fall short of their main promotion objective.
Chris Davies' Blues are already aware that this isn't going to be as straightforward a mission as they anticipated it to be, with Reading drawing against the West Midlands club on the opening day starting the season for the relegated Blues on an underwhelming note.
Since then, however, Davies' men have won three on the bounce and have shown a great determination to win by any means necessary, as a last-minute goal from new recruit Scott Wright saw the third tier promotion favourites overcome Wigan Athletic 2-1 last time out.
Wright isn't the only fresh face that is performing well for the Blues currently, with Birmingham less irked now by losing homegrown product Jordan James to Rennes consequently.
James' time at Birmingham
It did feel like a foregone conclusion that James would leave the club this summer in the wake of their disastrous relegation down to League One, with the likes of Serie A side Atalanta once reportedly sniffing about for the 20-year-old's services.
But, Birmingham had already proven that they could pull off the unthinkable when it comes to transfer dealings, having won back former loan star Jay Stansfield for a mammoth £20m on deadline day.
Still, they were ultimately powerless in the end when it came to their bright former gem departing last month, with the Ligue 1 titans forking out £4m to win James back in August.
Much like the situation that transpired with Jobe Bellingham – and even his brother Jude before him – Birmingham will hope they aren't left to rue another top homegrown product deserting the club for more luxurious pastures, with James far more part of the Blues first-team last season than the unbelievable pair would manage during their stays at St. Andrew's.
Scoring ten times across 105 first-team appearances, and assisting a further two goals, there would have been a worry that James' absence could hurt Davies and Co in their bid to instantly return to the Championship.
But, as has been seen all transfer window long, Birmingham are unafraid to splash the cash to strengthen all over the park, including in the deal to snap up Icelandic ace Willum Thór Willumsson from Go Ahead Eagles.
Willumsson's transfer value at Birmingham
According to Football Transfers, despite only being at the Blues for a matter of months, Willumsson has already seen his transfer value increase.
Purchased for a fee in and around the £3.5m mark – as per Sky Sports – the ex-Go Ahead Eagles man is now worth just under £1m more at £4.3m, £300k more than what James was sold on for to move to France.
Stat
Reading
Wycombe
Leyton Orient
Wigan
Minutes played
51
25
35
90
Goals scored
0
1
0
0
Assists
0
0
0
1
Touches
25
23
26
58
Accurate passes
15/16 (94%)
15/19 (79%)
14/20 (75%)
33/37 (89%)
Duels won
2/4
2/2
1/2
7/18
Stats by Sofascore
This is down to the fact Willumsson has looked like a confident performer in the English game already, registering two goal contributions from his first four tastes of League One action, with the Icelandic midfielder really standing out against Wigan last time out.
Going in for an impressive 18 duels on the day, with the 25-year-old putting his 6 foot 4 frame to good use, the Blues number 18 also assisted the opening strike of the contest before Wright's heroics at the death.
Once worth just £252k when playing for BATE Borisov during the early days of his career, Willumsson will hope his value continues to go up and up playing for his new employers.
James has quickly been forgotten about at St. Andrew's, on the contrary, as the Welshman now attempts to make a name for himself in Ligue 1.
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