Kanya Fujimoto will continue at St Andrew’s for the foreseeable future, according to Birmingham City manager Chris Davies, who added him to their EFL squad registration list.

The 27-year-old had a rough debut year in Birmingham after joining on a free transfer from Gil Vicente last summer, when he was a regular in the Portuguese top tier for over four years.

He did not play a comparable role at St Andrew’s, as he played only 141 senior minutes across all competitions, 45 of which came in five cameo replacement appearances in the Championship.

Fujimoto appeared to be on his way out of Birmingham this summer, but no deal was made, and the offensive midfielder was later added to the Blues’ squad list for the current EFL season.

Chris Davies provides an update on Kanya Fujimoto’s Birmingham City future.

The transfer window may be closed in England, but it remains open in other European leagues, including Portugal, where Fujimoto has made over 150 top-flight games in his career.

So, despite the fact that the move did not go through over the summer, there was still a chance that the 27-year-old might leave in the coming weeks, but that does not appear to be the case.

Fujimoto spent the preseason at St Andrew’s and has been included to Chris Davies’ EFL registration squad. The Blues manager plans to stay until at least January.

“He was named in the 25-man squad with that intention,” Davies stated, according to Birmingham Live.I was always honest with Kanya about his game time. I didn’t want to promise him things that I couldn’t keep. It was to see and evaluate his choices. I like Kanya because he is a great team player.

“He hasn’t had a significant impact in competitive games.”The goal was to instill confidence in him to be a part of it, but if he thought he wanted to go on, we would absolutely support that. He’s with us right now, and the idea is for him to stay.

Kanya Fujimoto will be looking to prove himself in a Birmingham City shirt over the coming months.

Last season, Fujimoto was frequently included in teams but did not appear on the bench. Indeed, he was an unused substitute in 24 different Championship games.

This follows a similar trend from the start of the season, when the 27-year-old appeared in the squad but did not play in four of the five league games.

Fujimoto did start in Birmingham’s 6-1 home defeat to Brentford in the EFL Cup, which was a poor day all around. While few people left St Andrew’s with their heads held high, the offensive midfielder will hope he is not judged severely for his performance.

Kanya Fujimoto versus Brentford

Minutes played

Touches

Pass accuracy

8/10

Defensive contributions.

Nonetheless, that performance hasn’t altered Chris Davies’ opinion on whether he should play more league games – an opinion that Blues supporters don’t entirely disagree with.

With Fujimoto expected to stay until the new year, he’ll have plenty of people to prove wrong if he’s given opportunities between now and then.

Kanya Fujimoto’s time in Portugal indicates that there is a player there.

Birmingham has seen an abundance of signings under Knighthead leadership. Some have succeeded, while others have failed spectacularly, but Fujimoto’s predicament is far more perplexing.

The Japanese attacking midfielder was a top-20 player in Liga Portugal for goal contributions in the 2024/25 season for a club that finished in the bottom half. He was also a top-ten chance maker among attacking midfielders.

His availability was also a strength. He rarely missed a game, and the majority of his outings came at the start.

It’s perplexing how a creative midfielder who scored 10 or more goals in each of his final two seasons in the Portuguese top division has failed to make an impression in the Championship, despite playing in a group filled with midfield talent.

But Fujimoto has done just that, and while he appears to have been given a respite after a rough first year, he is running out of time to prove that he can play in the second tier.