Birmingham City reveal major Lukas Jutkiewicz decision - It will be bittersweet for Blues fans | OneFootball

Experienced striker Lukas Jutkiewicz has confirmed that he will be departing Birmingham City at the end of this season to retire from football.

Birmingham City have announced that Lukas Jutkiewicz will be retiring at the end of the season, but the Blues hero will remain with the club in a new role.

After spending heavily last summer, including breaking their club-record fee to bring in Fulham striker Jay Stansfield, Chris Davies’ side have lined up the all-time record points tally in the EFL of 106, set by Reading in the 2005/06 campaign.

The 36-year-old Jutkiewicz has been a bit part player for Birmingham throughout the campaign, offering experience mainly off the pitch with just 14 appearances made in the league and one goal scored ahead of their final three games of the season.

Birmingham City striker Lukas Jutkiewicz retiring from football, but will move into new Blues role

There will be a hint of sadness in Birmingham City's final home game of the campaign on Sunday, and that is because it has been announced via the club's website on 26 April that veteran striker Jutkiewicz will retire at the end of the current season.

However, Blues can't get rid of their cult hero centre-forward that easily, as it's also been confirmed that he will move into a new role with the club, the details of which will be announced in due course.

Jutkiewicz goes down as a cult hero and a modern-day fan favourite on the blue side of the second city, and replacing his experience will be a test for Davies’ side this summer as they seek promotion to the Premier League next season.

Jutkiewicz initially joined Birmingham on loan from then Premier League side Burnley in the summer of 2016 before making his move a permanent one in the winter of 2017 following eight goals in 20 appearances for the Blues.

He would immediately establish himself as Birmingham’s main focal point in attack across the next six seasons, and was still heavily involved last season in their relegation from the second-tier, albeit less so than previously.

Overall during his time at St Andrews, the 36-year-old striker who has made top-flight appearances for both Everton and Burnley, has made 356 appearances for the club, scoring 69 goals in the process, with his top three most prolific campaigns across all competitions across his career coming with the club.

The former Middlesbrough striker is a forward whereby his influence goes way beyond his scoring exploits and his ability to hold up the ball and prove to be a nuisance for a defender with a rough and rugged style, albeit with genuinely excellent technical ability, is what has made him such a favourite in the second city.

He will leave the club coming up short of breaking into the top ten all-time appearance makers for the club, but to be able to get close to that in the modern era speaks to his longevity, commitment and durability.

That club-record fee for Stansfield was spent with attacking the Championship in mind for next season, too, with the expectation being that they would comfortably wrap up automatic promotion from League One.

Alongside Stansfield, Birmingham do have some other options in attacking areas of the pitch, such as Lyndon Dykes, who is perhaps now ready to take on the mantle of being the target man at St Andrews exclusively now in the absence of Jutkiewicz.

As well as Dykes, there is Alfie May, who may be in doubt about his future as he was brought in as a guarantee of goals in League One, but having never played above the third-tier, could find himself surplus to requirements at the ambitious Birmingham.

Regardless of whether Birmingham do decide to part ways with May, they will likely bring in further experience and quality in the final third to add some depth in the striking department at a higher level.