Birmingham City exclusive: Stephen Carr on January spending, Dion Sanderson, and catching Aston Villa | OneFootball

FLW has been speaking exclusively to Stephen Carr

Ex-Birmingham City defender Stephen Carr is far from the only former Blues player keeping a close eye on the exciting developments at St Andrew's under the new American owners.

The Irishman spent the final four years of his playing career at the Second City club - notching up more than 100 appearances across spells in both the Premier League and Championship while also captaining them to the famous 2011/12 League Cup triumph over Arsenal.

In the decade or so since Carr's departure, Birmingham have failed to return to those sort of heights but there is a feeling that under Tom Wagner and Knighthead Capital, they are now moving in the right direction.

Speaking exclusively to William Hill, the former Republic of Ireland international has shared his thoughts on the club's American ownership and looked ahead to the January transfer window.

Birmingham City warned to limit January spending

Chris Davies' side remain heavy favourites for the League One title this season after a summer of big spending. They're third in the table as things stand, a point behind second-place Wrexham and three back from league leaders Wycombe Wanderers, but have games in hand and look to have put a recent stumble well behind them.

It would be no surprise to see the former Spurs coach backed again in the January transfer window - to boost his side's promotion hopes and prepare the squad for the Championship - but Carr has warned them about limiting their spending.

"I think they will look at the League table at the end of the year and then decide [whether to trust Davies with more money in January]," he said. "But they have to be careful with FFP as spending has been high and they want to ensure they adhere to all the rules of the league as the priority is promotion and not to have any off-field issues.

"I think the squad is good and I don’t expect much business in the transfer window. You have a good base of hungry players and you don’t want to upset the momentum of the squad. Only if Birmingham City get injuries to any major players do I think they will spend more in January."

Birmingham City backed to keep key players in January

Losing key players is a fear for most EFL clubs, particularly those enjoying a successful season, but the excitement surrounding the project at Birmingham and their financial backing may mean they can avoid any unwanted exits.

Carr has suggested that the likes of Jay Stansfield could be the subject of attention from elsewhere but does not believe anyone important will leave.

He explained: "I don’t think they will. I believe the project is set in the huge ambitions Birmingham City have so the players will be on board with that and look to finish the job they started of getting promotion to the Championship.

"You can’t look too far ahead otherwise you may falter on the way, so getting promotion is the main aim. The current squad of players are good enough to get that done for sure. As for any players, Jay Stansfield was signed for big money, but there is little sign he will leave the project."

Blues must trust Chris Davies over Dion Sanderson

One player expected to move on is Dion Sanderson. The former captain has fallen down the pecking order and reports suggest that Birmingham will look to offload him, likely on loan, during the winter transfer window.

Should they fail to replace him and find themselves short of defensive cover later in the season, it could be a call they live to regret but Carr believes trust must be shown in Davies' decision-making.

He said: "You have to trust the head coach with his decisions and with the current team on the pitch doing a good job and getting results, scoring goals, then there is no issue if they do loan Sanderson. The group believe they are on the right track, they have good support, both home and away, and it’s a good time to be a fan of Birmingham City."

Marc Leonard has to stay patient and take Birmingham City chance when it comes

Marc Leonard has also found it hard to lock down a place in the starting XI, with 10 of his 13 League One appearances coming from the bench. The midfielder was a wanted man during the summer window and opted to head to St Andrew's, only to find that Davies has preferred a partnership of Paik Seung-Ho and Tomoki Iwata in the centre of the park.

Carr has urged Leonard to be patient, work hard and be ready to take his chance when it comes.

"It’s tough," he said. "You just have to keep working at your game, take your chance when it comes, and go from there. If you are putting it in, giving your all, then it’s a case of going to the powers at be and suggesting it’s time to move on. You could get injuries, so you have to be ready."

Birmingham City have turned a corner but catching Aston Villa remains a pipedream

The target this season is clear - promotion back to the Championship - but Wagner and co have lofty aspirations and are chasing a seat at English football's top table as well.

It's certainly an exciting time for Bluenoses and Carr was quizzed on whether he'd love to be playing for the current regime.

He said: "To play in front of a packed St Andrews is great and it’s good that that the club has turned a corner and has a clear vision of where they want to go."

But the former Birmingham defender warned that expectations of catching rivals Aston Villa, who are playing Champions League football under Unai Emery, may be a little over the top.

He said: "No, I don’t think so. Aston Villa are playing in the Champions League, they are competing at the top of the Premier League, and it’s full credit to Unai Emery and the great job he is doing and some of the hugely talented players they have at Aston Villa. For Birmingham, the task is simple, get promoted back to the Championship. Then if that happens, they can review how they can compete in the Championship, which is a very tough League.