news-engine

Luton tipped to have scouted Blues defender Buchanan Full back has returned following over 18 months out injured Luton Town are rumoured to have shown a scouting interest in Birmingham City full back Lee Buchanan. The 25-year-old began his career with Derby County, turning professional in 2019, as he played 75 times for the Rams in three years before moving to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen in July 2022. He found regular first team football tough going at the Weserstadion though, making 23 appearances, but only two league starts, opting to head back to England 12 months later, signing for Birmingham in a reported seven figure deal. He made 35 outings as the Blues were relegated from the Championship, but a calf injury saw him miss the opening few months of the 2024-25 campaign, as when he did return, he suffered serious knee ligament damage on December 29, 2024, which kept him out for the rest of the campaign and the whole of last season. However, the ex-England youth international, having played for the Young Lions at U19 and U20 level, plus winning two caps for the U21s is now back in full training and has come through a full pre-season campaign for Birmingham. Although he has two years left on his deal at St Andrew’s, it appears game time in the Midlands could be limited for Buchanan with the arrival of Palermo defender Kristoffer Lund on a long-term contract, with the Blues also having Alex Cochrane in their ranks too. The left-footer’s latest action came as a substitute in Blues’ 2-2 draw with Barcelona on Friday night at St Andrew’s, a game that Hatters assistant manager Chris Powell was reported to have attended. Speaking about Buchanan’s future, Blues boss Chris Davies told the Birmingham Mail: “One thing I will say is Lee has been training very consistently and very well. He’s looked strong. “It’s been really hard for Lee because he’s just broken down in the two years I’ve been here with a couple of nasty injuries, but he’s strung together a pre-season now which is really promising. I’ll speak to Lee in the next coming weeks. For him, regardless of anything right now, the main focus has to be to keep getting fitter and stronger and then we’ll work out what the right path forward is.”