Yahoo News Birmingham City have six alternatives to Mike Eerdhuijzen after transfer breaks down
Birmingham City are busy scouring the market for Mike Eerdhuijzen alternatives after their deal for the Dutch centre-back broke down.
Blues struck a deal with Sparta Rotterdam for Eerdhuijzen over the weekend and the 23-year-old jetted in to complete the move on Monday. However, the deal hit a snag and now seems unlikely to be resurrected.
The club’s interest in Eerdhuijzen gives us an idea of what they are looking for in at least one of their centre-backs. Not only is Eerdhuijzen physically imposing, standing at 6ft 4ins, he is also left-footed and comfortable at playing out from the back.
Blues went without a naturally left-sided central defender last season after failing to sign Auston Trusty permanently from Arsenal. It has been a while since Blues had a leftie adept at playing out from the back.
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There are others who fit the bill and could be attainable. Even though Blues are a League One club in name, Knighthead’s financial clout means the club are still capable of carrying Championship salaries. Here are six left-footed centre-backs who Blues could sign instead of Eerdhuijzen…
Pawel Bochniewicz
Club: Heerenveen
Age: 28
Perhaps we should be wary of a defender who played in one of the Eredivisie’s most leaky defences last season but Bochniewicz ticks a lot of other boxes. The three-cap Poland international has been a fixture in Heerenveen’s side over the last three seasons and occasionally contributes goals from set pieces, which is no surprise given his 6ft 4in frame.
Bochniewicz blocked 33 shots and won 55 percent of the tackles he attempted in 29 league matches for Herenveen last term.
Justin Hoogma
Club: Heracles
Age: 26
Hoogma is slightly older than Eerdhuijzen but very similar in profile. The centre-back was a stand-out player in a struggling Heracles team last season. Having left Heracles for Hoffenheim in 2017, Hoogma returned to his boyhood club two years ago after struggling to make an impact in the German top flight.
Hoogma is a more successful tackler than Bochniewicz, with a 68 percent win ratio, and boasts an 83 percent pass completion rate on FBREF.
Marco Komenda
Club: Holstein Kiel
Age: 27
Komenda is among the more attractive options on the market having just helped Holstein Kiel win promotion to the Bundesliga. He isn’t, however, a fixture in Holstein’s XI and hasn’t been throughout his four-year career with them.
Based on a reduced amount of game time last term, Komenda completed 84 percent of his passes and made 4.5 clearances per game. Statistically, Komenda tackles well and is dominant aerially with three headers won per 90 minutes.
Elias Cobbaut
Club: Parma
Age: 26
Belgian defender Cobbaut spent last season on loan in his homeland with Mechelen, where he played 30 Pro League matches. He is contracted to Serie B side Parma for another 12 months but he hasn’t played consistently for them since the 2021/22 campaign.
Cobbaut is a Belgium international but won his solitary cap back in 2019, so there isn’t much chance of him winning his place back. Without top tier international ambitions to consider, Blues in League One shouldn’t be a no go zone.
Joris Kramer
Club: Go Ahead Eagles
Age: 27
The final Eredivisie option is Kramer, who has never ventured outside the Netherlands. He came through at AZ Alkmaar but left them in 2022 having failed to break into their first team set-up. Kramer has played consistently in the Eredivisie over the last three seasons and was a mainstay in a Go Ahead Eagles side that finished in mid-table last term.
Lewis Gibson
Club: Plymouth Argyle
Age: 23
English options in this position are hard to come by and usually overpriced but Gibson is worth considering. Whether he can be lured away from Championship side Plymouth is another matter.
Gibson played 41 games in the second tier last season and is comfortable at centre-back or left-back. At 6ft 1in, Gibson is a good size and he is good in possession too.
