Jay Stansfield withdraws from England U21 duty with new Birmingham City injury concern
Birmingham City striker Jay Stansfield has a new injury worry.
Jay Stansfield has reportedly been sent back to Birmingham from England Under-21 duty after it was judged he was not fit to take part in the international break.
Blues’ record £13 million signing was eager to add to his three England Under-21 appearances with upcoming fixtures against France Under-21 and Portugal Under-21 but he’ll have to wait for his next opportunity.
Sky Sports News reports Stansfield was asked to go back to Blues to recover from “knocks”. It doesn’t appear to be a significant issue for the striker but it was deemed enough for his international duty to come to an end before it had even properly got underway.
Birmingham will now take a look at Stansfield to discover the extent of his “knocks” and will take all necessary precautions. The striker’s premature return to training could turn out to be a blessing in disguise as he can focus on getting back to full fitness ahead of an important run of games in April and May.
Blues will play all 10 of their remaining League One games over just five weeks, kicking off with matches against Shrewsbury and Bristol Rovers. Following the trip to the Memorial Stadium, Davies’ men take on Barnsley, Peterborough United, Blackpool, Crawley Town, Burton Albion, Mansfield Town and Cambridge United to round off the league campaign.
Injuries halting Stansfield’s progress
Stansfield feared a serious injury when he was stretchered off against Bradford City in the Vertu Trophy semi-final last month. Bantams defender Romoney Crichlow landed on Stansfield’s leg awkwardly and Blues’ talisman was grounded for several minutes before going to hospital for treatment.
In the end, following scans and tests on his lower leg, there was no serious damage and Stansfield was able to return in a matter of weeks. Blues will be hoping their star forward can come back into the fray even quicker this time around as he recovers from a seemingly more minor problem.
Stansfield will be eager to do just that, too, as he’s tantalisingly close to League One top scorer Richard Kone in the race for the Golden Boot. With 16 goals in 27 matches so far this term, Stansfield is two behind Kone with 10 games still to be played. The pair are level for assists with two apiece, while Kone’s 115 minutes per goal is marginally better than Stansfield’s 128.
The injuries so far have at least been insignificant - touch wood - but Stansfield will be hoping to shake off fitness woes altogether. The 22-year-old has such a bright future ahead and won’t want his development to be thwarted by any further setbacks.
It was always a risk dropping down to League One after proving his capability in the division above by winning all of Birmingham’s individual accolades on loan from Fulham last season, but it’s probably turned out to be the right decision as Stansfield is now in an even stronger position to take the Championship by storm.