Birmingham City have invested closely in two younger strikers with the hope they will kind a long-term partnership
06:00, 03 Apr 2026
Birmingham City striker August Priske had a aim chalked off in opposition to West Bromwich Albion
Chris Davies has sorted his Birmingham City gamers into three teams.
Established performers from whom he is aware of what to anticipate, new arrivals who want to ‘make their stamp’ and people who ‘need to prove they still can be here’.
Sifting them into the related buckets could be an attention-grabbing debate however on the prime finish of the pitch – the place it issues most – there can be little dialogue about Jay Stansfield and August Priske.
By anybody’s measure Stansfield certainly falls into the primary class. A £15million signing almost two years in the past, at simply 23-years-old he’s a participant who already has 131 appearances and 46 objectives beneath his belt.
He’s had a bit of a lean time within the final couple of months however maybe like no-one else in Davies’ squad Stansfield will get the membership and has carried out for it. Don’t a lot pencil his title in for subsequent season as chisel it.
By distinction Priske could be very a lot the definition of a current acquisition who’s discovering his way in Championship soccer. In his first 11 video games we have now seen each why Blues had been keen to make investments a reported £6m in a uncooked striker from abroad – and why he’s within the Championship and never the Premier League.
Priske wants to put his stamp on the league in the identical way the likes of Jake Cooper and Lloyd Jones put their stamps on him.
While questions stay about Stansfield’s optimum place, No. 9, second striker, left-sided No. 10, left wing to title however a few ideas, there isn’t any such ambiguity about centre-forward Priske.
On that foundation then, the ultimate seven video games would appear a golden alternative to see them paired collectively. Blues’ two massive putting investments given time to dovetail and Priske a probability to determine the league, the crew and probably his long-term companion.
Stansfield alongside or simply behind Priske appears like a pure evolution and one Davies is contemplating.
“In the very short-term I’ve got to weigh up their readiness and the minutes that they can play. August has been a long-term signing – Jay also, but he’s been here a few years,” the manager said.
“It has been an adaptation for August however there’s positively scope for these two to play collectively. They’ve performed it twice, in opposition to Leeds it went fairly nicely, in opposition to Millwall it didn’t go fairly so nicely.
“There’s positively scope for them to play collectively sooner or later.
“Like August, we’ve got a big interest in developing those players because they’re ours. They’re definitely things we’re thinking about.
“I’m hoping now August has got over his illness and he can make an impact in the last few games.”
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That might explain why the Dane has been relatively little used in recent weeks. While Marvin Ducksch divides opinion, Stansfield searches for his best and Kyogo Furuhashi remains a failed experiment, Priske has tended to be cast in the role of New Jutkiewicz.
He was summoned off the bench against Sheffield United and Derby County as a Plan B and as little more than someone to aim high balls at. Davies has to find a better way of tapping into his potential.
The 22-year-old, who is yet to score for Blues, bagged for Denmark Under-21s in the week, a clinical, near-post, sliding finish applied to a low left-wing cross.
It did not escape Davies’ notice: “He’s got some competition for that spot with the Danish U21s because they’ve got a couple of good strikers actually, but he was on for ten minutes and got a goal.
“He’s hardly trained or anything like that, so it’s good for him to get some training in and minutes on the pitch. We’ve got two games in three or four days so we’re going to need the squad this weekend, absolutely.
“He’s a player that thrives on crosses because of his size. We need to get people around him.
“In the Charlton game he was on his own, very isolated, we need to make sure we’ve got people around him that he can combine with, and that can slide him in, or play crosses.
“We haven’t got the best out of him yet. He’s still getting going and in these next seven games he’s definitely going to get some opportunities.”
If Stansfield can finish his barren run and Priske can get off the mark to see out the season, an inconsistent marketing campaign can at the very least finish with the promise of higher to come – each from the crew and from two strikers who’ve been introduced to St Andrew’s to rating the objectives to take the membership into the Premier League.
