Birmingham City's shrewd dealing is underlined by player they sold to Stoke City for £3.5m | OneFootball

Birmingham City's decision to cash-in on Jack Butland back in 2013 looks a masterstroke 12 years later

Birmingham City's decision to cash-in on teenage goalkeeper Jack Butland back in 2013 raised eyebrows at the time, yet more than a decade on it looks a masterstroke as he finds himself playing for Rangers.

Stoke City met Birmingham's asking price on deadline day in January 2013, agreeing a fee rising to £3.5m and immediately loaning Butland back for the rest of the season.

Blues, beset by financial problems, secured vital funds without losing their number one until the summer, and also inserted a sell-on clause in anticipation of a future windfall.

Jack Butland's Stoke City move

The Butland sale came during a period where Birmingham's acting chairman at the time, Peter Pannu, openly admitted the club might have to sell first-team players to steady the books.

Blues were 20th in the Championship at the time, and were resigned to doing this to reduce their wage bill, according to BBC Sport.

Assistant manager Terry McDermott told BBC WM that management at the club were left in the dark over Butland's future, saying "But whether Jack stays or goes, I'll leave to the powers-that-be-upstairs."

Securing a fee while retaining the player on loan allowed then-manager Lee Clark to finish the campaign with his star man still between the posts.

Crucially, it avoided the scenario Stoke later found themselves in - watching an asset depreciate as contracts ticked down.

Butland's journey since leaving St Andrew's

After initial loans at Barnsley, Leeds and Derby, Butland seized the Stoke No.1 shirt in the 15/16 season after Asmir Begovic's departure to Chelsea - earning Player of the Year honours and nine England caps.

Relegation to the Championship coincided with a dip in form and confidence. A 5-0 defeat at Leeds in 2020 proved his 168th and final game for the Potters.

Palace's cut-price swoop of £1m made him Vicente Guaita's understudy and, despite a loan stint at Manchester United, he clocked just 17 senior games in three seasons.

In summer 2023 he rebooted his career at Rangers, signing a four-year contract, becoming Michael Beale's first-choice keeper and speaking of "a huge opportunity" to regain momentum.

Butland's form for the Potters sparked sensational price tags - £30m was reportedly quoted after Premier League relegation in 2018, and £20m remained the benchmark a year later.

Yet interest never translated into cheques. By August 2020, Sky Sports said Stoke were willing to consider between £8m - £10m as his contract wound down - but eventually accepted just £1m from Crystal Palace two months later.

Birmingham inserted an undisclosed percentage into the 2013 agreement, and were probably hoping the Potters would cash in following Euro 2016 - as Butland was tipped to become England's starting goalkeeper.

Although he became the youngest goalkeeper to represent England ever - at 19 years and 158 days - a fractured ankle derailed momentum.

By the time Palace struck that £1m deadline-day deal, the sell-on clause was obviously worth pennies.

Birmingham letting Butland go has proved to age well

Strip away the hype and Birmingham City banked the peak fee of Jack Butland's career on the very day he left the club. Every rumoured sum that followed has proved to be smoke without fire.

The Palace fee - plus the free Rangers move - underlines how fragile goalkeeper valuations can be. It's worth a reminder that Stoke wanted £30m for him, then two years later he left for £1m. For Bluenoses twelve years later, their views on the transfer might be a little different to how they were at the time.