The Championship club have persuaded one of their hottest prospects to remain with them for the time being as the protracted buyout of Blues starts to show some meaningful progress. Prospective City owners Paul Richardson and Maxi Lopez are close to announcing their new plans to redevelop St Andrews as part of their vision for the club and they will fight to keep boss John Eustace if Huddersfield step up their interest in the Blues boss.

Championship rivals Town are considering a shock move for Eustace if they fail to land their top target David Wagner. The Terriers want to bring former boss Wagner back to the club after sacking Danny Schofield after one win from nine games in charge.

Wagner is out of work since leaving Swiss club Young Boys in March this year and is favourite for the role. He is still held in high regard by the Yorkshire club for guiding them to the Premier League in 2017 and keeping them there until leaving in 2019. But negotiations over a return to the John Smith’s Stadium have been protracted which has left Huddersfield’s head of football operations Leigh Bromby also considering a move for Eustace, who has only been at Birmingham since July.

Bromby, 42, previously played with Eustace ,42, at Watford and has been following his start to full-time management at Birmingham. Eustace has picked up seven points from his last three games and has been a hit with fans and the club’s prospective owners Richardson and ex-Argentine striker Lopez, who have agreed a deal to buy-out the club’s Far East owners.

The pair have put down a deposit and are waiting for EFL approval to proceed with a £35million deal spread over two years. The pair, who have faced questions over their funding, are said to remain confident of getting control at St Andrews and are working on plans, to be made public soon, to redevelop the club’s ground, parts of which are still closed on safety grounds.