Birmingham complete Vine signing

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Birmingham have won the race to sign Luton striker Rowan Vine.

The Hatters say they have accepted a revised offer from Birmingham of £2.5m, rising to £3m if Steve Bruce's side are promoted to the Premiership.

Birmingham's rivals West Brom were thought to be keen on the 24-year-old, who has scored 14 goals this season.

But Vine, who has signed a three and a half year deal, said: "This was exactly the move I wanted - it's as close to the Premiership as could be."


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Birmingham manager Steve Bruce was keen to strengthen his forward line with Nicklas Bendtner and Cameron Jerome on the injury list.

And Vine told the club's official website he did not need much persuading to join them.

"I see it as a massive compliment that a team like Birmingham, who are top of the league, wanted to sign me," he said.

"The team has done brilliantly to get where they are now. There's 20-odd games left this season and hopefully I can play a part in getting the club into the Premier League and play as many games as I can."

Despite Luton's struggles, Vine has scored four goals in the last five games - including one against Birmingham in a 2-2 draw.

And he paid tribute to his former club after passing a medical at St Andrew's.

"They're a great bunch down there and Mike Newell is a good manager. I had two and a half brilliant years at Luton and I made a lot of friends, but the pros of leaving really outweight the cons.

"Hopefully, for me, it's about being able to achieve what I want to do, which is play at the top level. IT's a massive opportunity for me," he added.