Birmingham City have had a decent season so far, with Pep Clotet encouraging a different style of play as he looks to build a new-look side.

As well as that, the Spaniard has focused on bringing through youth, with Odin Bailey and particularly Jude Bellingham establishing themselves as important members of the squad.

That shows to everyone in the academy that there is a pathway to the first-team, although some will have to secure temporary moves away before forcing their way into Clotet's plans.

And, one man who did that was midfielder Charlie Lakin, who joined League Two Stevenage on loan.

However, the move hasn't really worked out as he would've hoped just yet, although that's not down to the player as he suffered a thigh injury shortly after signing that halted his progress.

Lakin, who has made 13 appearances for Blues over the years, played as the side drew at Mansfield but didn't feature again for the next two months.

He made his return for the Boro at home to Morecambe towards the end of October and played 68 minutes as they picked up a vital three points. After that, Lakin has made three consecutive appearances, including as they lost to Peterborough in an FA Cup replay during the week.

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So, after a slow start, the midfielder is getting the minutes on the pitch that he wanted and even though Stevenage are bottom of the league, playing in that challenging environment could help him in the long run.

That's what Blues will hope and they will be monitoring his progress as Lakin looks to become the latest academy graduate to break into the XI moving forward.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.