Birmingham City forward frustrated as move hits snag

In the January transfer window, Alex Jones was loaned to Wellington Phoenix in order to play at a higher level than he was currently doing in the U21 league which seemed too easy for him. He had the composure to not only finish great shots but to make the right decisions in terms of when to pass or dribble. This decision making is often not there with younger players.

However, Jones has been left frustrated due to a complication with the loan deal. He has not currently made his debut for the club who currently play in the Australian A-league despite only being there until May. Due to the A-league closing date being slightly different to the English system, the necessary documentation was not completed in time and therefore Jones has been left out.

The frustrating part of the deal is that both clubs managed to fulfill the paperwork and requirements in on time but it was just the middle man in terms of admin that has let both sides down. Now it is just a waiting game to see when FIFA and the other Australian federations can pass the security measures needed for clearance.

It is disappointing as it was the perfect time for Jones to go out on loan. He needed more game time than we were able to provide at the level that he needed. I think that he has the ability to be a future first team striker but there is a lot of frustration when the club has completed the signing only for that player to be sidelined.

Jones and his fellow U21 team mate, David Popa, looked to have cemented a really good partnership in youth football. Jones has the ability to be strong and psychical whisky Popa is more technically able in terms of how he strikes the football. I can see these two blossoming into a really good partnership and it’s good that Jones has gone on loan to try and match the technical ability of Popa in order for the partnership to have a chance of working at a higher level than youth football.