Fulham have not ruled out sending Jay Stansfield out on loan again this season.
The 21-year-old striker scored 13 goals on loan last season with Birmingham — who wanted to sign him permanently afterwards — before returning to Fulham this summer.
Manager Marco Silva said at the end of last season that he wanted the England Under-21 international to stay with Fulham for the 2024/25 campaign.
However, Standard Sport understands a decision on where he spends this season is yet to be made, with Fulham open to loaning Stansfield out again if an attractive enough proposal materialises.
A sale has also not been ruled out. While that is not Fulham’s desired outcome, any transfer fee would count as pure profit for accounting purposes, given he is an academy product.
Stansfield scored for Fulham in a behind-closed-doors friendly on Saturday, as the Cottagers thrashed Watford 6-1 at their Motspur Park training ground. He landed in Portugal with the squad on Tuesday for Fulham’s pre-season camp in the Algarve.
Silva had wanted Stansfield to stay with Fulham this season after success on loan in the Championship with Birmingham represented the career trajectory that had been planned. The season before, he netted nine goals in League One while on loan at Exeter.
Birmingham beat a host of second-tier clubs to seal his services on loan last season, including QPR.
Silva said of Stansfield on May 10: “He’s going to be back with us. Everything we planned […] was a box [ticked]. He played the season before in League One, and to be able to give a step forward in the Championship and to be an important piece in the attack-line and score important goals [was pleasing]. Jay achieved all the important things.
“Now is the moment for him to come back and be one of the players in our attacking line for next season.”
