DAVIES COULD SIGN "TERRIFIC" REPLACEMENT FOR STANSFIELD AT BIRMINGHAM

Chris Davies, now fresh in the Birmingham City hot seat, will want to crack on and start adding signings to his new Blues roster, ahead of entering into the cut and thrust of League One.

The new Blues manager, who has left the comforts of Tottenham Hotspur behind for the challenge of getting the sleeping giant immediately promoted, will hope he's adequately backed in the transfer market, as the American owners at St. Andrew's also pray for a short but sweet stay in the third-tier.

Losing Jay Stansfield, who has returned back to the luxuries of Premier League Fulham after a fruitful loan stay, is an obvious blow, having been a constant ray of positivity during dark recent times in the West Midlands.

But, they could immediately replace him with this potential buy in the works.

Birmingham linked with Stansfield replacement

According to a recent report in The Sun, Birmingham - alongside a whole host of other EFL clubs - are queueing up to try and win the services of forgotten Burnley man Scott Twine, who will be sold by the Clarets this transfer window.

Adept at playing down the wings, as an attacking midfielder, or up top, Twine would be an ideal replacement for the out-going Stansfield, who can equally play in all of these roles competently.

Likewise, Twine would also be able to replace Stansfield in terms of goal numbers, with the promising Fulham youngster bagging 13 goals last season for the Blues, even with the on-field situation being bleak for the majority of the campaign.

The Clarets target has also proven himself to be a goalscoring machine in the EFL from memorable stints at clubs away from Turf Moor, but it won't be a foregone conclusion that the 24-year-old relocates to Birmingham, with interest from the Championship in Bristol City and Sunderland no doubt more tempting.

Yet, with the upward trajectory of his career grinding to somewhat of a halt in Lancashire, moving down to League One could be the confidence-boosting switch he needs, to find his shooting boots once more.

How Twine could be Birmingham's next Stansfield

The 24-year-old never quite settled at Turf Moor after a whirlwind rise all the way up from League Two to the Championship, with the agile attacker suffering from unfortunate luck with injuries, alongside a whole plethora of other exciting forwards at Vincent Kompany's disposal being available over him.

Twine's record in League One will, however, make Davies' eyes light up in the Blues dug-out regardless of his up-and-down stint at Burnley, with the slick forward bagging 20 goals last time he was in the division for Milton Keynes Dons, which actually betters Stansfield's one-season goal return when he was plying his trade with Exeter City on loan in the same league.

Ending his last season in the third tier with a ridiculous 33 goal contributions, it's no shock to see that Twine's ex-MK Dons manager Liam Manning wants to add him to his Bristol City group now, having once described the 24-year-old as a "terrific" talent when the pair were together at Stadium MK.

Twine's numbers at Championship level, before his Clarets career began to fizzle out, aren't far off Stansfield's this season just gone either, tallying up nine goals and four assists in the division across 49 total games, which included a sublime free-kick being fired in on the way to Kompany's men winning the title.

This would arguably be a statement signing from Birmingham, and one that would instantly lift the spirits at St. Andrew's, ahead of what they hope is a promotion-winning campaign.

2024-06-10T23:47:21Z dg43tfdfdgfd