Chris Davies drops fresh update on Jay Stansfield's situation at Birmingham City | OneFootball

Blues' club-record signing wasn't part of their matchday squad on Saturday evening

Birmingham City manager Chris Davies has issued a fresh update on club-record signing, Jay Stansfield, who was omitted from his matchday squad for the 3-2 victory against Cambridge United at the Cledara Abbey Stadium on Saturday evening.

After spending a solitary campaign in League One, Blues entered the FA Cup at the third round stage for the 30th time in 31 years this weekend, with the draw pitting them against Neil Harris' League Two promotion hopefuls away from home.

Having returned to winning ways in the Championship with a statement 3-2 success over Coventry City at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park last weekend, the West Midlands outfit emerged victorious by the same scoreline against their lower-league opponents, although the encounter was far more dramatic than anyone would have envisaged with 12 minutes to go.

Indeed, Blues' maiden recruit throughout the winter transfer window, Kai Wagner, opened the scoring on the half-hour mark and Kyogo Furuhashi's first goal since August was followed by Marvin Ducksch's third goal in six days, all before Cambridge substitute, Sully Kaikai, set up a grandstand finish with a brace inside the final 10 minutes of normal time.

Only two changes were made by Davies ahead of kick-off, with one of those seeing Kyogo replace Stansfield in the starting lineup, although some concerns were raised when the 22-year-old forward and top scorer was not part of the travelling party whatsoever.

There were, of course, concerns over the England Under-21 international's fitness and availability after he was absent from Blues' 3-0 defeat to Watford at Vicarage Road on New Year's Day, although he returned and played 92 minutes of the follow-up success against Coventry on January 4th.

As such, Davies has issued an update on Stansfield's current predicament, with the Second City side returning their focus to a crucial second tier clash away at Swansea City next Saturday evening.

Chris Davies issues fresh Jay Stansfield injury update after Cambridge United omission

In recent weeks, Davies has suffered a minor availability crisis at St. Andrew's in recent weeks due to injury and suspension issues.

It was exclusively revealed last week by Football League World that Lewis Koumas - who was handed a second successive start against Cambridge - was expected to return to Liverpool, before Davies hinted at a potential U-turn on said decision with star winger, Demarai Gray, set to be absent until next month with a calf injury.

Throughout his time in the West Midlands, either as a loanee from Fulham or a permanent member of the squad, Stansfield's availability has very rarely come under question, which has been a major benefit to Birmingham over time.

The club-record signing and poster boy of Knighthead Capital Management's well-publicised rebuild in this part of the world previously scored 12 times at this level in his temporary stint away from Craven Cottage, and continues to lead the scoring charts for a third straight campaign in B9.

It has been clear how much Davies has valued all competitions since his appointment in June 2024, with Stansfield only missing two matches out of Blues' prior Championship and prior EFL Cup fixtures in the lead-up to last weekend, with both of those being away defeats to Leicester City and the aforementioned Hornets.

The Blues boss revealed last week that his star forward suffered a dead leg - for the second time this season - in the controversial 1-1 draw against Southampton on December 29th, and he was handed the chance to fully recover from said issue this weekend despite playing almost the full match against Coventry beforehand.

“Jay picked up a knock a few weeks ago and he's been carrying on with it. He did really well to get through the Coventry match as he did," Davies said after the Cambridge success.

“It's a knock and we’re hopeful that he has a good week and he's OK. It won't be a long-term thing but it’s a knock that he’s had to sit out with," he added.

Chris Davies saw Birmingham City strikers return to and continue strong form in Jay Stansfield's absence

Whilst there is hope that Stansfield will return for next weekend's trip to South Wales, Davies will be relieved that Kyogo ended his well-documented goal drought against the U's, whilst Ducksch is certainly a man in form at present.

Of course, Stansfield's main position in an altered system has seen him feature in the 'number 10' role behind a main striker, which is a role that Ducksch took up against the fourth tier side on Saturday.

After Kyogo's strike, though, the former Tottenham Hotspur assistant may be presented with a dilemma, as the Japanese international will hope to now translate such exploits into the Championship, as he awaits his first league strike amid conflicting reports over a reunion with Celtic.