Double Birmingham City blow means £775k star simply must step up | OneFootball

Alfie May must step up to the plate in the absence of Jay Stansfield and Lyndon Dykes

Birmingham City took another giant leap towards an immediate return to the Championship after a routine 2-0 victory over Leyton Orient at St Andrew’s on Tuesday evening.

Yet another three points means Chris Davies’s men have extended their unbeaten streak to 17 matches and have won six out of their last seven third tier outings to leave the West Midlands outfit 12 points clear of third-placed Wrexham.

Blues are also firmly in the driving seat to become champions of League One too as they lead Wycombe Wanderers by nine points with a game in hand.

Strikes from unconventional sources in Taylor Gardner-Hickman and Ethan Laird were enough to give Birmingham another victory, but they had to bide their time against a 10-man Orient, who had stayed defensively resolute from the 12th minute onwards, after Jack Currie was given his marching orders.

While it was all smiles on the evening, there will be some slight concern about the forward options for Birmingham heading into the final 15 games of the campaign, with injuries beginning to affect the squad.

In order to maintain the promotion push, Blues will need to rely on other senior figures to lead the line and provide enough ammunition between now and the end of the season, with forward Alfie May set to play a key role to cover Jay Stansfield and Lydon Dykes’s absences.

Birmingham City have been hit with untimely injury issues to some of their key frontmen.

Blues' record signing Jay Stansfield, who has been instrumental in their League One promotion push this season, was forced off during the club's Vertu Trophy semi-final victory over Bradford City.

While the injury was initially feared to be serious, scans revealed no ligament or bone damage, meaning the former Fulham man will be back soon for the final run-in, but no timeline has been issued yet on when he will return.

Meanwhile, former QPR forward Lyndon Dykes also finds himself on the treatment table, with the odds stacked against him to make a return before the end of the campaign.

The Scottish international pulled up with a calf issue in the blank against Reading last weekend, with boss Chris Davies admitting the 29-year-old is facing several months on the sidelines.

Alfie May’s dip in form for Birmingham City

Injuries to two key players has offered a route back into the first team picture for Alfie May, who has had to settle for a place on the bench since the end of January.

After firing in a brace against Wigan at the turn of the year, May has failed to find the back of the net in his last eight games, becoming a bit-part player and even remaining an unused substitute against Cambridge United.

Earning just 65 minutes of football over five matches prior to the Leyton Orient clash, May returned to the starting fold and completed 90 minutes, but again failed to showcase his goalscoring exploits in the 2-0 victory.

May will have to sharpen up when he gets given more consistent minutes, with Blues still requiring a healthy source of goals at the top end of the pitch to keep themselves at the summit.

Alfie May must step up to secure Birmingham City promotion

While Alfie May is most likely to earn a starting place under Chris Davies at this moment in time, the 31-year-old isn’t completely alone in competition in the forward line.

Experienced frontman Lukas Jutkiewicz still has his place in the squad, and he can offer a much-needed presence and physicality up top if May continues not to produce attacking contributions.

It already feels like a pivotal moment in May’s early career at Birmingham City, with the former Exeter City man having the chance to be a real hero in getting the club back into the second tier.

However, if his struggles continue, fears will arise over whether May is good enough for a place in the Championship, with a return to League One possible if he can’t thrive with the best team in the division.