“A good deal for all parties” – Birmingham City eye transfer move for 25-year old: The verdict

The Newcastle United goalkeeper is likely to depart St James’ Park this summer, with Preston North End also seen as a possible destination for the goalkeeper.

Here we ask our FLW writers their verdict on if the shot-stopper would be a good addition to the Blues’ squad ahead of the new Championship season… 

This would be a good deal for all parties.

Woodman needs to get as much first-team football under his belt as possible after rarely appearing for AFC Bournemouth during the second half of last season – and certainly has the experience needed (from his time at Swansea City) to be a real asset at St Andrew’s.

And the West Midlands side are in need of another shot-stopper following the departure of Connal Trueman, so this is a move that makes sense if they can negotiate a deal where they don’t have to pay a hefty wage for his services.

A loan move would probably be sufficient for Lee Bowyer’s side at this stage, especially with their current owners unlikely to splash the cash this summer. They need to address other areas as well, so it would be preferable if this deal was a cheap one.

This does look as though it would be a very good signing for Birmingham if they could pull it off.

The Blues do look to be in need of a new goalkeeper to provide cover and competition for Neil Etheridge, with Matija Sarkic now back at Wolves after his loan spell.

Woodman would obviously provide that, and while his time with Bournemouth may not exactly have worked out, his performances for Swansea mean there should be no doubt that he is a more than reliable option between the posts at Championship level.

Beating a second-tier rival such as Preston to his signing could also be a welcome show of intent from Birmingham given the off-field