Despite having signed a four-year contract during the 2000–01 season, Devlin asked for a pay rise in September 2001, and submitted a transfer request when he was turned down. He was dropped to the reserves, and suggested that he was being made a scapegoat. After Birmingham City's approach to take him on loan was rejected, Devlin told the media how he "would walk over broken glass to come back." Although he believed that Steve Bruce, who had tried to sign him for Crystal Palace, would do so again once his appointment as Birmingham manager was made official, and a deal was reportedly in place with a £400,000 fee agreed, this did not initially happen, and there was speculation that the club were reluctant to sanction signing another ageing player.