Birmingham City have loaned midfielder Cheikh Ndoye to Angers, but with one year left on his contract he's unlikely to return.

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Ndoye has been part of Garry Monk's plans this season, but as he's now gone it leaves the Blues boss with a couple of dilemmas in midfielder, one pressing and the other a longer term issue.

The hope is that he has a replacement lined up, a player coming in on less wages who can slot alongside Craig Gardner in the centre of the park and lead the side as Ndoye had.

He may not be the Blues captain, but he was an on-field leader.

The rather pressing issue arises this weekend against Stoke City.

Craig Gardner was dismissed on Saturday meaning the two who started Saturday's defeat against Boro are not available.

That means Maikel Kieftenbeld is almost certain to get a run out.

The 28-year-old played in the League Cup win and appeared 35 times in the Championship last season. He might be seen as a step back for some fans, but at least he has experience of the level as well as knowing the manager and players well.

He should slot in permanently, unless of course Garry Monk does have an ace up his sleeve.

If he doesn't then the Blues are also likely to see the first Championship glimpse of Gary Gardner, the midfielder signed from Aston Villa on loan. He's Craig's brother and as yet, he hasn't played in the league.

He got 73 minutes of the League Cup defeat at Reading which is a performance likely to be even more concerning now Ndoye has gone.

Going forward, will the Dutchman get a starting place, or are Birmingham about to be driven by a pairing of brothers, born and raised in the city but schooled at their fierce rivals, Aston Villa?

The real impact here is on numbers, Birmingham don't have enough recognised central midfielder to adequately get them through to January and on Saturday, they barely have enough for a first team squad.

How Garry Monk manages to juggle his players about will be interesting, but Stoke City will be relishing their opponents having such a crisis this early in the season.