Bramble: A Thorny Issue?

The connection between Titus Bramble and Birmingham City seems to be getting stronger. The Magpies` defender is available on a free transfer after a not particularly happy spell with the club and several news sources have now quoted Steve Bruce`s alleged interest in the centre half.

Newcastle`s defence has been more than usually leaky this season with clean sheets few and far between in the league. Considering the sums of money that have been lavished on players, the return has not been good. There are likely to be a number of departures in the near future as new manager Sam Allardyce assesses his team and rebuilds it for the coming season.

Bramble arrived at St James`s Park in 2002 from Ipswich for £5m and the general opinion is that he has did not live up to his transfer fee. Currently aged 26, he should still have many years left as a professional player.

The possibility of him joining Birmingham has caused very mixed reactions amongst the fans. Some feel that his confidence has been affected by the generally poor morale at Newcastle and that he may flourish elsewhere.

Others feel that he is no better than the current array of central defenders and will not strengthen one of the most critical areas of the team. A few are plain horrified.

It could be argued that of all people, Steve Bruce ought to have an eye for a decent defender and has maybe seen past his current record and towards how he can shape him into a player who will help keep Birmingham in the Premiership second time around.

However, David Sullivan was quoted in the press within the last 24 hours that there is not likely to be significant transfer activity until July, so maybe all this speculation is unfounded.