Peterborough United can have a free shot at a £33 million Birmingham City squad

Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images).Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images).
Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images).
​When news of a £20 million transfer budget for League One title favourites Birmingham City City broke in the summer it naturally caused a stir.

​But the report was inaccurate. The budget was much bigger. City spent around £33 million on 13 new players according to football industry website transfermarkt, plus loan fees on four others who wouldn’t normally expect to be playing in the third tier.

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No wonder The Blues are the hottest League One title favourites in history, although Posh can therefore take a 'nothing to lose’ approach to St Andrew’s this Saturday.

Birmingham smashed the English third tier transfer record by over £13 million when persuading exciting Fulham forward Jay Stansfield to drop down two divisions. The 21 year-old scored 13 goals for the Midlanders in their 2023-24 relegation season from the Championship.

Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
Jay Stansfield celebrates a goal for Birmingham City against Wrexham. (Photo by Alex Pantling/Getty Images)

Birmingham also spent over £4 million on overseas players Cristoph Klarer (Germany) and Willum Willumsson (Iceland) and more than £1 million on four other players, Emil Hansson, Lyndon Dykes, Alex Cochrane and Japanese star Ayumu Yokoyama. The latter’s countryman Tomoki Iwata didn’t cost a lot less when moving South from Scottish champions Celtic.

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A ‘no expense spared’ approach has even stretched to £980k on goalkeeper Ryan Allsopp who has sat on the bench in League One matches as Northern Ireland international goalkeeper Bailey Peacock-Farrell, a snip at £530k, has been preferred.

Others to arrive at St Andrew’s in the summer included reigning League One Golden Boot winner Alfie May (£915k from Charlton) – a player who was introduced into the Football League by Darren Ferguson when he was managing Doncaster – and Marc Leonard (£560k from Brighton) a midfielder who spent last season on loan at Cobblers.

In contrast Posh could field a starting XI at St Andrews on Saturday which cost £3.5 million, a decent sum for the division, but about a fifth of what Birmingham apparently paid for Stansfield!

Birmingham spent £$.1 million on centre-back Christoph Klarer  (right) (Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images)Birmingham spent £$.1 million on centre-back Christoph Klarer  (right) (Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images)
Birmingham spent £$.1 million on centre-back Christoph Klarer (right) (Photo by James Fearn/Getty Images)

Jed Steer – Free

Sam Curtis – Loan

Jack Sparkes – £300k

Oscar Wallin – £150k

Jadel Katongo – Loan

Archie Collins – £900k

Hector Kyprianou – £450k

Joel Randall – £1 million

Kwame Poku – £500k

Malik Mothersille – Free

Abraham Odoh – £200k.

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Posh did spend £500k on left-back Rio Adebisi in the summer, but injury will keep him out until November.

They also spent approximately £300k on young centre-back George Nevett who has yet to break into the Posh first team.

Current attacking midfielder Joel Randall is one of five players purchased by Posh in the club’s history who cost over £1 million. Mo Eisa is the club record purchase at £1.3 million from Bristol City.

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Pre-Stansfield the record transfer fee paid by a League One club was the £4 million forked out by Sunderland for Wigan Athletic centre forward Will Grigg in 2019.

According to transfermarkt Birmingham City’s previous record signing had been striker Emile Heskey from Liverpool for £9 million in 2004.

These days transfer fees are usually undisclosed, so the above numbers should be treated as ‘ball-park’ figures.