Liverpool handed Birmingham City profit after turbulent Jermaine Pennant stint: View | OneFootball

Much like many clubs in the Football League, Birmingham City have had their fair share of receiving impressive transfer fees for players.

The likes of Jude Bellingham, Che Adams and Matthew Upson are among the record departures from St. Andrews @ Knighthead Park in recent years, but perhaps their best piece of business came in the form of Jermaine Pennant, who arrived from Arsenal for £3 million.

Blues would go on to make a nice profit as the midfielder secured a move to Liverpool in 2006, with many left wondering what could have been in the West Midlands as his off-field antics, often overshadowed his talents on the pitch.

Jermaine Pennant's Birmingham City career

Having started his career with Notts County, Pennant would move to North London and turn out for Arsenal, where he would spend six years of his career.

He would make just 26 appearances for the Gunners, with much of his time at Highbury spent on loan, including switches to Watford, Leeds United and eventually Birmingham, where he would spend the second half of the 2004/05 season.

Pennant made an impressive start to life in the West Midlands and made his intentions clear of seeking a permanent move to St. Andrew's, but his off the field antics proved to make the situation slightly more difficult to resolve.

In March 2005, the midfielder was arrested for drink-driving while banned, resulting in him receiving a three-month prison sentence. Despite this, Birmingham manager, Steve Bruce and chairman David Gold, vowed to stand by Pennant once his sentence was over.

He was released from prison after serving 30 days and infamously wore an electronic tag during a match against Tottenham Hotspur. The midfielder would complete a permanent move to the club the following season for a reported £3 million, but he would continue to struggle with his discipline.

It was reported that Pennant turned up to training drunk and being physically incapable of taking part, and then was involved in an incident at a Birmingham nightclub, with Bruce warning the midfielder to get his personal life in order.

But Pennant was unable to stop Blues' drop to the Championship the following season, and would end his time in the West Midlands having made 60 appearances for the club, with Birmingham able to recoup the money spent on Pennant's rather underwhelming time at St. Andrew's.

Birmingham City would be handed profit from Jermaine Pennant move

Despite failing to impress during his time with Birmingham, Pennant would secure a move to Liverpool, a year after their Champions League success in Istanbul, with the Merseyside club paying an initial £6.7 million, which would rise to £8 million with add-ons.

It was considered good business for Blues having made a significant profit on the midfielder, using the extra funds made by the departures of Matthew Upson, Emile Heksey and David Dunn to to bring in more talent to St. Andrew's.

But Pennant would begin to showcase his talents at the beginning of his time at Anfield, receiving the Man of the Match award on his debut against Maccabi Haifa.

His first season would see him make 52 appearances in all competitions, including featuring for the entirety of Liverpool's defeat to AC Milan in the Champions League final in Athens.

And despite putting in solid performances on either flank, he would struggle to maintain the form he showed the campaign before, making less than half the appearances the following season, resulting in a move to Portsmouth in January 2009, before becoming a free agent upon the expiration of his Liverpool contract.

A further eight moves would follow for Pennant, including stints with Stoke City, Wigan Athletic and Bury, before retiring in 2019.

While many saw the clear ability Pennant showed during his time with Birmingham, many supporters have thought about what could have been had he stayed in the West Midlands.

Pennant clearly had the ability to be an excellent player, but his off-field issues often overshadowed his playing talents, something which when you look back on, is a huge disappointment for someone blessed with so much talent.