‘Gone horribly wrong’ - Why ex-Celtic star Kyogo Furuhashi has been a £10m flop for Tom Brady and Birmingham

A healthy return of 85 efforts through 165 appearances was recorded across three-and-a-half productive years in Glasgow, with a personal best return of 34 goals being posted in Celtic’s 2022-23 Treble-winning campaign.

A stint at Rennes in France did not last long, and delivered no end product, with Kyogo being snapped up by Birmingham less than six months after he headed to Ligue 1. He was considered to be a serious statement of intent from Tom Brady and the Blues’ board - given his exploits in Scotland - with dreams of promotion to the Premier League forming in the West Midlands.

The 31-year-old has just one Championship goal to his name, which arrived in mid-January 2026, and the target has only been found on three occasions across 29 outings in all competitions. His season has been brought to a premature conclusion by surgery on a long-standing shoulder problem.

It has been suggested that Birmingham may look to cut their losses in the next transfer window. What looked like being a dream switch has quickly become a nightmare, with GOAL quizzing former EFL star-turned-pundit Goodman on what has gone wrong.

Speaking exclusively in association with BestOnlineCasino.com, the former West Brom and Wolves striker said: “Their first game at St Andrew’s, they played Ipswich Town, who were clearly the pre-season favourites to win that league. And they drew 1-1. Ipswich got a late penalty. But Birmingham, in reality, in terms of performance of the game, smashed them.

“I had already said to my Birmingham City friends that I have, and there are many, don't expect to be up near the top this season because you've just romped League One. The Championship is a different animal. And Ipswich were an exception rather than a rule when they came up from League One and went straight up to the Premier League the following season. It rarely, rarely happens like that.

“So Kyogo was excellent on the night. I liked his movement. He had a goal fairly harshly ruled out for a barge into the back of a defender, which was soft. But the finish after that, I thought, wow, they're onto something here.

“And, honestly, he started missing real gilt-edge chances in those first six, eight games and you could slowly but surely just see the confidence drain away from him.

“In terms of value for money, it's gone horribly wrong with regard to that particular transfer. And it's surprising, really. I like his movement. He's energetic, he's quick. But he didn't look like he could hit a barn door, if I'm honest with you, after a difficult start.”

Kyogo signed a three-year contract with Birmingham that is due to run until the summer of 2028. It appears, at present, unlikely that said terms will be completed. He may, however, be presented with a clean slate in pre-season - with the hope being that he is now clear of an injury that has been troubling him for some time.

The Blues do need to find firepower from somewhere, if they are to push on towards the top-flight, and it could be that Kyogo is moved on in a bid to raise funds that can be reinvested elsewhere.