Birmingham City have announced their retained list as they look ahead to summer. 

The Blues had a far from ideal season this year as they finished 20th in the league and just ten points above the relegation zone.

Despite doubts over his future at the club, for now it is Lee Bowyer who is taking the side into summer as they look to improve things on the pitch for next season.

There were two standout names on the list of released players in Jeremie Bela and Kristian Pedersen.

Bela has been with the Blues since 2019 and this season made 31 appearances for his side, scoring twice and contributing five assists.

Pedersen, meanwhile, joined Birmingham back in 2018 and has the left back was a mainstay in the side this year making 37 appearances and scoring twice. Since joining the Blues he has made 161 appearances for the side.

Both players saw their contracts expire this summer but neither player could be convinced to stay at the club.

At the start of the year, Birmingham's technical director Gary Gardener said deals had been put to both players although they were not happy with the numbers, which clearly suggests a suitable deal could not be found to suit both parties in these cases.

Other names on the released list are Renedi Masampu, Archie Matthews, Oriol Soldevilla, Kane Thompson-Sommers, Connal Trueman and Yoane Zohore.

The Verdict: 

The departures of Bela and Pedersen felt very much expected after the comments from Gardner back in February, yet no update was delivered since then.

However, with the off the pitch troubles at Birmingham the deals coming down to a case of money does not seem that unexpected.

Fans will no doubt be disappointed to see the back of two key players in the team but they will be hopeful that Bowyer can redistribute their wages well and make some suitable replacements in the team.

The list didn't throw anything unexpected for Blues fans so that in itself will be a comfort for them as they anxiously await the summer.