The potential impacts on Birmingham City now transfer has been secured for Premier League man

In the end, it was a busy final day of the January transfer window for Birmingham City, with two new signings completed by the Blues.

One of those signings saw 19-year-old attacker Keyendrah Simmonds joining on a permanent basis from Manchester City.

The other deal also involved a Premier League club, with defender Yan Valery joining on loan from Southampton until the end of the season, with 21-year-old no doubt keen to enjoy more regular game time after finding opportunities harder to come by at Southampton this season.

But what impact could the arrival of Valery at St Andrew’s have on Birmingham between now and the end of the season?

Here, in order to get an idea of that, we’ve taken a look at two possible side-effects that the defender’s move to the Midlands could have on Aitor Karanka’s side.

A selection headache for Karanka

With just one right-back spot available in the starting lineup, the arrival of Valery does seem to provide Karanka with a difficult decision to make on that side of his defence.

Even before Valery’s move to Southampton, Karanka had two solid options to choose from at right-back, in the form of Maxime Colin and Josh Dacres-Cogley, with this latest bit of business now giving the Spaniard another option to consider in that position.

Given there is likely to be an expectation for Valery to get a decent amount of game time as part of the agreement to bring him to the Blues, there could be plenty of pressure on Karanka when it comes to picking his lineup, and frustration for Colin and Dacres-Cogley if they find themselves further down the pecking order as a result of that.

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An increased attacking emphasis

One tactical impact that the arrival of Valery could have on Birmingham, is an increase in the attacking nature of the club’s playing style over the next few months.

Unlike those other two right-back options in Colin and Dacres-Cogley, Valery is a player who is capable of playing further up the field, meaning he does have the potential to help lift Birmingham in an attacking sense, and put some extra pressure on opposition defences.

Given the struggles the Blues have endured in front of goal so far this season, that is something that may not be a bad thing for Karanka and co.