Having suffered a tumultuous 2018/19 campaign which culminated in a 17^th place finish in the Championship, Birmingham City will be hoping for a lot better next year.

With Garry Monk doing a superb job amidst the financial uncertainties that currently surround the club, they are certainly in good hands.

However, when you consider that spending big is clearly not an option for the 40-year-old, he may have to turn to the Blues’ youth academy for inspiration over the coming months.

Keeping this mind, let’s look at three wonderkids who could break through at St Andrews’ next season…

Caolan Boyd-Munce

An exciting prospect, Caolan Boyd-Munce was one of the under-23’s’ most impressive players last year, playing a pivotal role in helping them reach the Professional Development League play-off final.

Although the Blues would go on to lose the clash against Leeds United on penalties, the maturity of the midfielder’s performance suggests that he should be given a chance by Monk in the Championship next season.

Already a Northern Ireland under-19 international, Boyd-Munce will be confident that he can make the step up in level from youth football.

Corey O’Keefe

Having joined the Blues at the age of 10, O’Keefe has long been tipped as a future star at the Midlands-based club and looked as if he would push on after being handed his professional debut in 2016 against Newcastle United.

However, with first team opportunities hard to come by at St Andrew’s, the full-back was loaned out to Solihull Moors a year later before returning to under-23’s action last season.

Yet despite this setback, O’Keefe may be brought back into the fray by Monk in the not-too distant future as his outstanding versatility means that he could operate in several different positions if called upon.

Odin Bailey 

A supremely gifted player, Odin Bailey has been part of the Blues' youth set up for 12 years and was given his first taste of senior football last season during a short-term loan spell with Gloucester City in the National League South.

Impressive throughout his time with the Yellows, the 19-year-old will be looking to finally make his professional bow for Birmingham during the 2019/20 campaign.

Capable of thriving both on the wing and in central positions, Bailey could offer the spark needed to help his club succeed in the second tier.