Championship outfit Middlesbrough are being made to wait for Birmingham defender Ryan Shotton by Blues manager Harry Redknapp, reports Sky Sports.

28-year-old Shotton only moved to St Andrew’s last year following a decent loan spell at the club the campaign before, and has since gone on to become an integral part of the Blues backline.

In fact, the former Stoke City and Derby County defender missed just three of Birmingham’s 46 Championship matches last term to underline his importance to the squad at the Midlands outfit, and even came off the bench against Bolton Wanderers on Tuesday night following an injury to fellow centre-back Michael Morrison.

And it appears that the injury Morrison sustained at St Andrew’s yesterday evening has put the brakes on Shotton’s move to Middlesbrough, which on Monday took a step nearer as reports suggested that the two sides had agreed a deal for the 28-year-old.

Yet Blues chief Redknapp has confirmed that he will not be going anywhere until they get replacements through the door.

He said: ‘We have agreed terms with Middlesbrough for Shotton's transfer but he will not be leaving until we have a replacement as I firmly believe we should have four central defenders on the books.’

These comments are sure to frustrate Boro manager Garry Monk, who has seemingly turned his attentions to defensive reinforcements in recent times, what with reported links with Shotton, Marcel Tisserand, and Ezequiel Schelotto becoming clearer in recent days.

And, although a deal is done for Shotton, it doesn’t look like the 28-year-old will be making the move to the Riverside Stadium anytime soon given Birmingham’s current centre-back crisis.

The Verdict: Only yesterday it seemed that Birmingham defender Ryan Shotton was on his way out of St Andrew’s but, although they have agreed a deal with Middlesbrough, he isn’t going just yet.

And that’s because Blues boss Harry Redknapp recognises the problems he has got in the centre-back department following Michael Morrison’s withdrawal against Bolton Wanderers, which forced Shotton to deputise for the last hour which, for someone set to leave the club, is highly unusual.

Yet the 28-year-old showed his class and professionalism with a solid display at the heart of the Birmingham defence, and the St Andrew’s faithful may well see more of Shotton than they expected in the next few weeks.

Birmingham and Middlesbrough fans… what do you make of the news? Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!