Wayne Rooney is reportedly keen to sign former England teammate Jack Butland for Birmingham City after becoming the Championship club’s new manager.
Rooney controversially replaced John Eustace as Blues boss on Wednesday. They currently sit in sixth place in the league table and will be hopeful of finishing in a playoff spot.
Birmingham should have some money to play with in the January transfer window after US-based Shelby Companies Limited completed a full takeover of the club in July.
It seems that Rooney is keen to bring in a new goalkeeper to provide competition for John Ruddy, who is already past his prime at the age of 36.
Now, according to the Sun, Butland has emerged as a target for Birmingham.
The goalkeeper began his career with the Blues, making 46 appearances for them overall. He has had stints at several clubs including Stoke City, Barnsley, Leeds, Derby and Crystal Palace, before joining Manchester United on loan from Palace in January 2023.
Butland and Rooney attended numerous England camps together and once shared the field together at the international level for Man Utd.
Butland never played for Manchester United before committing permanently to Rangers in June. This season, he has played for the Scottish team in eight league games and has recorded five shutouts.
Just four months after joining with Rangers, The Sun reports that Butland is considering his options in Glasgow because manager Michael Beale was fired two weeks ago. On Sunday, the Gers decided to hire Belgian manager Philippe Clement in place of Beale.
The report confirms that Rooney wants to sign a new ‘keeper in the January transfer window and is keen to capitalise on Butland’s apparent uncertain future.’
It’s thought that Butland could be swayed by the prospect of returning to St Andrew’s in the Blues’ bid to return to the Premier League under Rooney.
With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Birmingham do make a concrete bid for him in January and whether they can tempt Rangers into a sale.
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