New Birmingham City boss Tony Mowbray says loan striker and Town target Jay Stansfield wants to stay at St Andrew’s for the second half of the season.
Stansfield, 21, is a player Blues boss Kieran McKenna has admired for some time - TWTD first reported interest in July 2022 - and Town are keen to bring the Fulham striker to Portman Road during January, while Sunderland have also been linked.
Ex-Birmingham boss Wayne Rooney revealed that there is a small period in this window in which the Cottagers can recall Stansfield which former Blues captain and coach Mowbray says isn’t yet up.
"No, it hasn’t closed,” Mowbray told Birmingham World following his side’s third-round FA Cup victory over Hull City in which Stansfield netted his eighth goal of the season.
"I’ve been trying to get hold of Mark O’Sullivan over the last couple of days. I get on well with Mark. I’m pretty sure he would’ve been telling me if there were any issues or problems.
"I think the kid loves it here, ultimately. I had a one-on-one, I looked him in the eye. There are other interested parties but I think he wants to stay here and score goals. He likes the dressing room, he likes the players. I think he’s here just to progress his career.
"If he wants to play in the Premier League, he needs to be playing in the Championship and you need to be careful sometimes when the perception of a more successful club comes along near the top of the table. You’ve got to be careful that you don’t go there and play two games of the last 19.
"There’s every chance he’s going to play just about all the minutes in this team. I think he’s in a good place here. I don’t know, there’s a small tight window for things to happen [Fulham to recall] if need be.”
Town are targeting the addition of two strikers before the end of the window with George Hirst out for much of the rest of the campaign having undergone hamstring surgery and Dane Scarlett having gone back to Tottenham.