Birmingham City have remained keen to sign Fulham centre-forward Jay Stansfield this summer despite interest from clubs in the Championship, according to the latest reports.
Stansfield moved to St. Andrew’s a year ago on a season-long loan and had a fruitful spell in the West Midlands during a turbulent campaign for the club. The young striker scored 13 goals and recorded three assists in 47 appearances for the Blues despite being under the guidance of four different managers during his brief stay.
It was reported recently that second-tier side Hull City are looking for a new man to lead the line following the departure of Liam Delap, who spent all of last season on loan at the MKM Stadium and has subsequently moved to newly-promoted Premier League side Ipswich Town for an initial £15 million from Manchester City.
Furthermore, it is believed that fellow Championship club Cardiff City are monitoring Stansfield’s situation at Craven Cottage, with Fulham being open to selling the 21-year-old before the end of the summer transfer window.
Despite being relegated to League One after a dismal 2023/24 campaign, Birmingham City have been splashing the cash already this summer, having spent over £10 million on signings and this figure could rise to £16 million very soon.
The Telegraph have reported that the Blues are still in talks with Fulham to acquire the services of Stansfield for a fee of around £6 million and that Chris Davies’ side are the frontrunners in the race to sign the former Exeter City man.
Birmingham have already brought League One’s top goalscorer from last season, Alfie May, to the club for £775,000 but it seems as though the new head coach is looking to provide a back-up option to the 31-year-old in the way of Stansfield.
Writer’s View
If Stansfield returns to the West Midlands this summer, it would showcase the sheer financial power that Birmingham City currently have. Only Premier League promotion hopefuls Leeds United and Burnley have spent more money already in the transfer window across the English Football League.
This would be an incredible acquisition for the Blues. Stansfield was their top goalscorer in the previous campaign and would only further bolster an already stacked squad, while also providing May with some heavy competition for the number ‘9’ spot.
Deputy Head of Writing
