Tom Wagner's Birmingham City transfer plan is "absolutely worth it" on one condition | OneFootball

Birmingham made Jay Stansfield their most expensive purchase but may have their eyes on breaking that record again

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Birmingham City have their eyes on becoming the sixth side to achieve back-to-back promotions to the Premier League next season, after they secured the League One title with six games to go.

Talk about preparing for next season is already underway, as owner Tom Wagner looks to fulfil his initial ambitions to reach the Premier League by 2026, and with that talk comes the reveal of the prospective transfer budget.

Birmingham spent over £25 million last season, including smashing their own, and League One's, transfer record to bring in Jay Stansfield from Fulham for an eight-figure fee.

However, according to Birmingham Live, that record may not stand for too long, as Wagner revealed that he is willing to once again splash the cash in the Championship if the Blues have "the headroom to do it."

Birmingham fan pundit backs big-spending summer on this sensible condition

Football League World asked our resident Birmingham City fan pundit, Mike Gibbs, whether he felt that breaking their transfer record for a second successive season would be a smart move.

"I think it is if we bring the right player in," he said.

"When we broke the transfer record to bring in Jay Stansfield, we were bringing in a 22-year-old who had played in the Premier League and had the potential to grow.

"Yes, it was an excellent acquisition for the league we were in, but he's going to go far and above that. If he continues to progress, then he'll be worth double or triple that.

"So, if we break the transfer record to bring in a 32-year-old who isn't proven in the Championship, then it's a bad move. But, if we bring in someone who could be at the club for a few years, grow as we grow and then has a good resale value then it's absolutely worth it."

Birmingham City's revenue will place them among the highest in the Championship

As Birmingham will be in the Championship next season, they will now be governed by the Profit and Sustainability Rules, rather than the different set of financial regulations below the second-tier.

Mike therefore referenced Wagner's need to bring in revenue and the correlation that has to bring in quality players, which the Birmingham owner feels won't be a major issue going into next season.

Per Birmingham Live, Wagner revealed that even without having the revenue from their upcoming Amazon documentary, the Blues would have "already been on a path to have the same level of revenue as parachute clubs next year in the Championship."

But, if Birmingham are to operate under a healthy budget yet again next season, Mike still feels that sensible choices need to be made, just like they were last summer.

He concluded: "To pay for better players, we need the revenue. As long as it's not a silly gamble, and we've got the revenue in place for both the transfer fee and their wages, then of course [breaking the record] is the right thing to do."