Ipswich Town injury blow would be bad news for Birmingham City: View | OneFootball

It has been an outstanding season for Ipswich Town in the Championship so far.

The Tractor Boys were promoted from League One last season, and they have seamlessly made the step up to the second tier, spending much of the campaign in the automatic promotion places.

Ipswich suffered a setback as they were beaten 4-0 by promotion rivals Leeds United at Elland Road on Saturday, but they picked up an excellent point in the 1-1 draw against leaders Leicester City at Portman Road on Boxing Day.

Stephy Mavididi gave the Foxes the lead in the 24th minute, but the Tractor Boys grew into the game, and they deservedly equalised in the third minute of stoppage time when Sam Morsy's strike deflected in off Jannik Vestergaard.

Kieran McKenna's side currently sit second in the table, five points clear of third-placed Southampton, and they are back in action when they host Queens Park Rangers on Friday night.

However, Ipswich have been dealt a huge blow with the news that striker George Hirst is set to be sidelined for an extended period.

Hirst was forced off in the first half of the game against Leicester with a hamstring injury, and while the extent of the problem is still being assessed, McKenna described the injury as "significant".

McKenna told the East Anglian Daily Times.

"He's had some scans and he'll be seeing a specialist to get further clarification on what timescales we're looking at.

"It's not a very short-term injury. I think we can say that clearly. We should be able to put a clearer timescale on it next week."

"It's a big blow. "He's been very, very important to how we play and he's developed a lot over the last 12 months.

"It's not easy to step into those shoes, but we have strikers here who have done well for us in cup competitions and have been training well. Of course we're also pretty close to a transfer window where we'll try and add to the squad."

As McKenna says, the transfer window is fast approaching, and Hirst's injury is likely to intensify the club's search for a striker, which could be bad news for Birmingham City.

George Hirst injury blow is concerning for Birmingham City

Hirst's injury and Dane Scarlett's recall by Tottenham Hotspur leaves Kayden Jackson and Freddie Ladapo as Ipswich's only senior strikers, so it is certainly an area that McKenna will be keen to strengthen in January.

According to the East Anglian Daily Times, the Tractor Boys have enquired about Fulham striker Jay Stansfield, who is currently on loan at Birmingham.

Stansfield has scored seven goals and provided two assists in 22 appearances for the Blues so far this season, including netting in the 2-2 draw against Ipswich in November.

The 21-year-old underlined his importance to Birmingham with two goals in his last two games against Plymouth Argyle and Stoke City, and as the club continue to struggle under Wayne Rooney, it would be a huge blow if he was to depart in January.

Journalist Alan Nixon claims that Ipswich could spend up to £3 million on a striker in the January transfer window, with the club willing to pay up to £15,000 per week in wages, but the East Anglian Daily Times report that they could even go beyond that.

Hirst's injury will surely see the Tractor Boys step up their pursuit of Stansfield, and the club could have the financial resources to get a deal over the line.

Worryingly for Birmingham, Ipswich are not the only club interested in Stansfield ahead of January, with Sky Sports journalist Keith Downie reporting that Sunderland are also keen.

Stansfield's exit is the last thing that the Blues and Rooney need as they slide towards the relegation zone, but with Ipswich's need for a striker increasing and other clubs joining the race, it looks likely they will lose him next month.