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Bristol City confirm Max Bird exit as midfielder completes permanent move to Championship club Max Bird has played his final game for Bristol City, having joined the Robins' Championship rivals Birmingham City Bristol City have confirmed that Max Bird has departed Ashton Gate on a permanent basis, with the midfielder completing a summer move to the Robins' Championship rivals Birmingham City. Bird, who joined the Reds from Derby County two-and-a-half years ago, departs the West Country having been restricted - by injury - to just four Championship starts under the management of Gerhard Struber and Roy Hodgson last term. The 25-year-old officially became a City player in the winter of 2024, but immediately returned to Pride Park on loan for the second half of the 2023/24 campaign. With Paul Warne at the helm, the Rams were able to win promotion to the Championship as League One runners-up. Bird made the jump into the second tier with the Reds, instead, however. In his first campaign as a Robin, the midfielder played 49 times in all competitions - scoring once and assisting on eight separate occasions - as City ended their 17-year wait for a Championship play-off campaign under Liam Manning. A calf injury sustained during pre-season limited the 25-year-old's involvement in the opening weeks of Struber's tenure last year. After sitting out the opening day win over Sheffield United and a Carabao Cup win over MK Dons, though, Bird was able to play a role in each of the Reds' next five games, before being struck down by a similar issue that kept him sidelined for the best part of the next five months. Upon his return to the side, Struber managed Bird's minutes to avoid a similar setback. Unfortunately, three starts in the space of just eight days under the interim management of Hodgson saw the midfielder miss the final four games of the term. Following the appointment of Michael Skubala as Hodgson's successor this summer, Bird has been a regular starter over the course of pre-season and last week's Carabao Cup defeat to Walsall. With the midfielder in the final year of his contract, however, an exit this summer has always been a possibility. In a statement confirming the midfielder's move to St Andrew's, City's sporting director James Ellis said, "Max has made a positive contribution to the club, whilst also having some challenging periods. "In my short time here, he has been very professional and done all he can to get himself – and us - ready for the season. I have mentioned previously that there will be some tough decisions to make and we believe this is the best move for both the club and Max. "He goes with our blessing and everyone at the club wishes Max all the best for his future career." Bird himself added, "I want to say a huge thank you to the club and the fans who have always been behind me since I joined two years ago. I have many great memories and I’ve met some brilliant people here. I wish the club all the very best for the future.” Having won promotion back to the Championship as League One champions in the 2024/25 campaign, Blues finished 10th in the second tier last term. Ultimately, just two points separated Bird's new employer and his former club in 12th. City won't have to wait too long to be reunited with their former midfielder, with the Reds' trip to St Andrew's set for next weekend. The Robins faithful will make the short trip up the M5 for a lunchtime kick-off on Saturday, August 22. Bird is the fourth senior player to depart Ashton Gate this summer after Sinclair Armstrong, Ross McCrorie and Joe Lumley. Armstrong has joined Turkish side Göztepe, McCrorie has returned to Scotland with Rangers, while Lumley has dropped into League One with Sheffield Wednesday. At the time of writing, nine players have arrived in south Bristol with a little over a fortnight remaining in the summer window. Although Skubala and company have been rather busy, further additions haven't been ruled out.