Birmingham City: Why I left Blues, by Stephen Kelly

Feb 7 2009 by Colin Tattum, Birmingham Mail

Stephen Kelly

STEPHEN Kelly today explained the circumstances behind his move to Stoke City.

Kelly said it came out of the blue and triggered mixed feelings.

Blues left themselves without a recognised right-back after opting to collect a £500,000 loan fee for Kelly.

That money went towards the proposed Matt Mills transfer from Doncaster Rovers, which fizzled out before the deadline, and which Blues have been trying to revive.

“I received a call from my agent on Monday afternoon and he informed me that both Birmingham and Stoke had agreed on a deal for me to go on loan to Stoke for the remainder of the season,” Kelly said.

“This was unexpected news for me but after my agent had reiterated that Birmingham were happy to let me go, then that helped me make my decision.’’

“I was looking forward to playing the second half of the season for Blues and to getting stuck in with the lads in the battle for promotion.

‘‘But now I am ready to change my focus to helping Stoke maintain their Premiership status,” he added.