Birmingham City have agreed a deal to sign Cremonese defender Emanuel Aiwu.
According to Fabrizio Romano, the Blues have agreed a deal worth £3 million, and medical tests have been booked for Tuesday.
It is understood that Aiwu has been attracted to Birmingham by the new regime, which is being spearheaded by NFL legend Tom Brady and Tom Wagner.
Burnley had also been interested in Aiwu earlier in the year, sending scouts to watch him in April.
Who is Emanuel Aiwu?
Aiwu is a 22-year-old centre back, who can also play at right back or in defensive midfield.
The Austria under-21 international joined Cremonese last summer from Rapid Vienna in his home nation for a fee believed to be around €3.5 million. He made 23 appearances last season in Serie A, as Cremonese suffered relegation to Serie B.
He came through the youth academy at Admira Wacker in Austria, before joining Rapid in August 2021 for a fee believed to be around €750,000.
It’s no surprise Birmingham are after more defensive reinforcements following the injuries to Ethan Laird and Marc Roberts, the former coming off in a 2-0 win away at Bristol City a little over a week ago, whilst Roberts is yet to make an appearance so far this season.
The Blues have been linked with other defenders with the likes of former Burnley right-back Matthew Lowton being on trial with the club, who could end up being a good experienced option to have at the back.
Birmingham have started the season well, being unbeaten in the Championship so far, despite obtaining a number of injuries. The likes of Siriki Dembele have also been injured, whilst young midfielder Alfie Chang is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a knee injury.