Birmingham City climbed into the Championship's top 10 with a 2-1 win over Preston North End at St. Andrew's, where Ibrahim Osman shaped the game before his night ended early. The on-loan Brighton winger created Jay Stansfield's opener in the 10th minute and then scored the second himself six minutes later to give the home side a strong platform.
Preston refused to fade after Andrew Hughes chested in on 25 minutes to score his first goal of the season and cut the deficit. Paul Heckingbottom's side were the better team after the break and created several openings, but Birmingham survived that spell and nearly added a third when Carlos Vicente struck the post and August Priske was denied by Daniel Iversen.
Stansfield's long wait ends in a sharp Birmingham opening
The breakthrough came from Osman's energy and persistence. He intercepted Pol Valentin's pass, beat the right-back on the byline, and drove in a low, angled shot that Stansfield diverted past Iversen from three yards. It was a poacher's finish, but it also carried weight, ending Stansfield's 13-match drought in all competitions and bringing his 10th Championship goal of the campaign.