Jay Stansfield issues clear Birmingham City stance after Ipswich Town and Sunderland links | OneFootball

Fulham loanee Jay Stansfield has made it clear that he never wanted to leave Birmingham City in January despite links to Ipswich Town and Sunderland.

The 21-year-old joined the Blues on a season-long loan in the summer and has been hugely impressive - scoring 11 times in 41 games in what has been a turbulent season at St Andrew's.

Despite the managerial changes at Birmingham – with John Eustace, Wayne Rooney, Tony Mowbray, Mark Venus, and now Gary Rowett all taking charge this term – Stansfield has remained a near-constant in the side and his goals look set to be vital to keeping the club in the Championship.

The striker capitalised on a Preston North End mistake to score the winner on Easter Monday. That result ended a four-game losing run and moves Rowett's side two points clear of the relegation zone.

With six games left of the season, they still have a long way to go to secure Championship survival and Stansfield could prove to be a key factor in the final weeks of the 2023/24 campaign.

Jay Stansfield never wanted to leave Birmingham City

Had things played out a little differently, however, the Fulham loanee could be pulling on a different club's shirt for the run-in.

Rumours swirled in January about a potential recall and there was plenty of interest from the second tier - with promotion hopefuls Ipswich and play-off chasers Sunderland both said to be keen on the forward.

Stansfield stayed at Birmingham, much to the relief of the Bluenoses, and he revealed after Monday's victory that his mind was always set on staying at St Andrew's.

He told Birmingham Live: "At the start of the season I signed for a season on loan and that was my only aim."

The striker added: “Tony (Mowbray) is a great manager and we have missed him massively. Birmingham is such a big club and you can see all the players that have come through Birmingham in the past, the players that were in Birmingham last season that are playing in the Premier League now.”

He didn't shy away from the fact that it has been a testing season for Blues but believes that the strife has aided his development.

“It’s been a bit of a challenge, I can’t lie, but you learn so much from all the different managers," Stansfield explained. "I have taken a lot from every manager that has been here and I think it’s turned me into a better player than I was when I joined.”

Keeping Jay Stansfield likely to be vital to Championship survival

Stansfield may have hit a bit of a rough patch in form since the end of the January window but he has still scored some very important goals.

His strikes against Stoke City and Preston helped Birmingham pick up six vital points, which could well be the difference come the end of the season.

Blues will hope that his goal against North End can help him get back to his best as a reliable goalscorer is a huge weapon in a relegation battle.

Birminghamsix goals between them this term, which makes Stansfield's contributions all the more important.