West Bromwich Albion midfielder Craig Gardner has re-joined Birmingham City.
Birmingham City have confirmed on their official website that West Bromwich Albion midfielder Craig Gardner has re-joined the club on loan until the end of the season, with a permanent deal already agreed for the summer.
The Blues are likely to bring in a number of new faces this month, as new manager Gianfranco Zola looks to mould his own squad at St. Andrews following his appointment last month.
Crystal Palace’s Andros Townsend in action with West Bromwich Albion’s Craig Gardner
With just one point taken from his first four games in charge, Zola needs to turn things around quickly – and he’s going for proven quality in a bid to reverse that form.
Birmingham have today confirmed on their official website that midfielder Craig Gardner has re-joined the club from West Bromwich Albion until the end of the season, with a three-year permanent deal agreed, more than five years since he left the club.
Sunderland’s Wahbi Khazri in action with West Bromwich Albion’s Craig Gardner
Gardner, 30, started his career with Birmingham’s city rivals Aston Villa, but made the switch to the Blues in January 2010, scoring 11 goals in 52 games before earning a move to Sunderland in the summer of 2011.
WIth West Brom, Gardner hit six goals in 76 games in his first two seasons with the club, but has been frozen out under Tony Pulis this term, having started just two league games this term.
Gardner will now look to play some first-team football away from The Hawthorns, and could make his second debut for Birmingham this weekend when they take on Nottingham Forest.
The news comes after the Daily Mail claimed that a deal for Granada midfielder Rene Krhin has hit a stumbling block, and with Gardner arriving, it remains to be seen whether a move for the Slovenian can be resurrected.
Would you be happy to see Gardner return to Birmingham?
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