Birmingham City V Everton

Saturday, 13^th March – 15:00 GMT

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: WLLWW

After misery in the FA Cup, Birmingham made amends with victory in midweek, ironically over the very same opponent that inflicted defeat on them at the weekend in Portsmouth. Their 2-1 win at Fratton Park did go some way to forgetting Saturday’s miserable day out in the cup and those three points have helped the team cement their place in the upper tier of the Premier League table, although Alex McLeish just might have one eye on a European finish at this rate, with Birmingham just four points behind Aston Villa in 9^th position.

Birmingham didn’t half need that victory in midweek after three disappointing defeats in a row, with the latter, defeat in the FA Cup, being the one that hurt the most. However, the players displayed no signs of an FA Cup hangover as they got straight down to business at Fratton Park on Tuesday, sprinting into a 2-0 lead before Portsmouth gave them a brief scare right at the end. Birmingham’s reliance shone through once again as that vital victory ended a rut of consecutive defeats in the league, three in all competitions.

Form is crucial in this business and Birmingham must start almost from scratch as they aim to build up some steam ahead of some difficult upcoming fixtures. Moreover, this will be their last chance to earn some valuable points at home for quite some time as their following two league games are both away from home, while their next two home fixtures are dates with Liverpool and Arsenal, so this fixture with Everton, although tougher than most fixtures they will contest this season, takes on more significance as points could be few and far between for Birmingham in the near future. 

Fortunately for Birmingham, their form at home is very strong, with only two sides beating them at home all season; Aston Villa and Bolton, Both of which were very early on into the season, with Birmingham having not lost a home fixture since October, nearly going a staggering five months without losing at St. Andrews, ten home games in fact. That’s a formidable statistic for a club which only recently rejoined the Premiership and it’s one that merits a whole heap of respect, both from us and their match day opponents.

Interesting Fact: All of Birmingham’s seven wins at home this season have been by a one goal margin, while the same can be said for their five wins away from home meaning Birmingham have won twelve games this season by a single goal… amazing stuff!

Everton

League Position: 9th

Recent Form: WLWWL

Everton are in unfamiliar terrain this week as usually, what with it being European week, they would usually play their fixtures on a Sunday. However, their defeat in the last-sixteen stage of the Europa League means Everton are no longer involved in European action, which will be viewed as a double edged sword as while the fans have no more exciting ties abroad to look forward to, it does allow David Moyes to concentrate on just the league and ensuring the club at least finish in the European spot once again, although the Toffees do have their work cut out as they currently trail seven spot by four points.

The objective for the remainder of the season is pretty simple, win as many games as possible. After a heart-wrenching defeat away at Tottenham a fortnight ago, some were beginning to think that was it as far as Everton challenging for a European finish. How they were proved wrong when Everton smashed five past Hull City, a hapless Hull it must be said, in what was the clubs biggest win of the season and at a much needed time. Those five goals scored by Everton were their first five goal haul of the season, with Everton in fact failing to surpass the three goal marker before their emphatic victory over Hull at the weekend. 

While the manner in which they won was impressive, the amount of goals won’t significantly boost the morale at the club as Everton haven’t been shy in front of goal recently. In their last fourteen league games only once have Everton not managed to find the opposing goal, with that rarity coming away at Liverpool. They’ve been especially clinical at Goodison Park of late, having scored at least two goals in each of their last six, but away from home has been a different story with Everton’s only two goal goal in their previous three away encounters coming at Arsenal of all places.

Everton aren’t the same side when on their travels and this was especially the case at White Hart Lane in their last outing when losing 2-1 to Tottenham. The Toffees made a sluggish start that day and it took a good half-time rant from David Moyes before the Everton players finally woke up and realised they were in a tough game. They were much better in the second period, but by then it was too late and David Moyes must somehow conjure up a better start from his players if they are to fare a whole lot better in their very next away outing, one just as tough as their last.

Match Verdict: Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

I think this game could genuinely finish in a stalemate between two sides whom, when they get their tactics and deployment spot on, aren’t too dissimilar in how they set up and go about their business. Everton have the cutting edge up front, whilst the return of Mikel Arteta had added some spark into their forward play which should enable them to score plenty more goals in the remainder of the season. Birmingham, though are a stubborn sort and won’t look to give an ounce of space away, nor will they allow the Everton creators to settle on the ball, so this could be a tetchy affair at St. Andrews. A 1-1 scoreline stands out for me, while the odds on this ending in a draw look even more luring.

Match Odds:

Birmingham City – 3.00 VCbet

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Everton – 2.60 Boylesports

SoccerBetting Value Pick: 1-1 Correct Score – 6/1 SkyBet

FA Cup: Quarter-Final

Portsmouth V Birmingham City

Kick-Off: Saturday, 6^th March – 12:30 GMT

TV Coverage: ITV1

Portsmouth

FA Cup Odds: 20/1 Bet365

The inevitable took place last Friday as Portsmouth FC entered into administration becoming the very first Premiership club to ever do so. It was a miserable day for Portsmouth fans but it was also a low-point for English football as yet another one of England’s old-timers begins its predicted slumber down the leagues. However, while the Pompey players could be forgiven for feeling a tad sorry for themselves they instead went and put a valiant shift in up at Turf Moor, with a 2-1 victory being their just rewards for a spirited performance after a miserable week and year for the club.

The FA will soon dock Portsmouth nine points for entering into administration and that would leave the club almost certain to suffer relegation, if that wasn’t the expected destination for Pompey anyway. At the time this preview was written (Monday, 29^th Feb) Portsmouth were still rock-bottom of the Premier League but a more reasonable five points off safety. With the point penalty, however, Portsmouth are expected to fall a further nine points off safety, leaving the club need to claw back a fourteen point deficit just to stay in the Premiership. While there maybe still thirty-three points still up for grabs, Portsmouth’s death looks assured as they’ve not shown anywhere near enough form to suggest they will win the vast majority of their remaining fixtures in order to stay up – So prepare to wave goodbye to a rare South Coast Premiership side.

As far as betting on them in Saturday’s affair, it’s hard to weigh up their chances especially after their weekend heroics at Burnley. Many, including us, thought administration was the nail in the coffin and that the players would now lose all their remaining spirit and belief and simply roll over. They proved us and everyone else wrong with a whole-hearted display away at Burnley, what was just their second away win of the season. More importantly, however, that shock victory ended their baron run of eight league games without a win but they do return back to a venue where they’ve not enjoyed that winning feeling in either of their previous games at Fratton Park.

The South Coast has been the setting for better tidings though, with three of their fives league wins coming down at Fratton Park and Portsmouth losing two less games their. It’s nothing to write home about but it’s these small positives that will keep the fans flickering flames alive… just. The problem being, though, is that Portsmouth have managed just two draws in their last four at home, with the other two ending in disappointing defeats. However, Avram Grant will feel his sides have much more of a chance of picking up points at a venue where the players have clearly found more settling, with sixteen of their twenty-three league games coming in home fixtures. That’s a big difference and it’s also worth pointing out that Portsmouth have scored in each of their last nine home games, although on just three of those occasions did Pompey surpass one goal, so where there is a glimmer of hope we’ve quickly jumped in to extinguish it. Sorry Pompey fans!

However, their league form should go out of the window in many respects as the FA Cup is now far more significant in that a place in the Semi-Finals at Wembley is up for grabs. We do have huge concerns over their defence, one which has been shaky throughout the course of the season, but they’ve shown so much heart and character of late that we wouldn’t deter anyone from backing Portsmouth to defy the odds and keep this unfortunate dream/nightmare alive. One thing we will say is the FA Cup is now the teams last chance to repay the fans for their support throughout what has been a heartbreaking season. They will have the majority of the neutrals behind them, but Portsmouth will be going out to win on Saturday purely for the fans sake.

Birmingham City

FA Cup Odds: 12/1 bWin

Alex McLeish will surely be licking his lips at the prospect of taking his surprise package of Birmingham all the way to the Semi-Final at Wembley. Their opponents are a cash-strapped, knocking on deaths door Portsmouth, with the only real stumbling block for them being their lack of home advantage. It’s a crucial factor as were this tie to be at St. Andrews, Birmingham would be the firm favourites. They aren’t, however, and it’s up to the players to silence the Pompey crowd in what should be a subdued atmosphere but certainly won’t be as the fans give it one last hoorah in a bid to drive their ’sick’ club into a memorable Semi-Final.

A Birmingham side who sit eighth in the Premiership will be supremely confident over their chances of winning on Saturday after a sensational season up till this point. They club are in fact pushing for a European finish, not that Alex McLeish will want to believe it. However, whereas Portsmouth have their minds distracted by so many issues; league position and money concerns one of a few, Birmingham have next to none and can place their full attention on their next big task at hand: Winning Saturday;s Quarter-Final clash down on the South coast.

While this isn’t an away fixture in the league, it’s worth point out that Birmingham have been less effective on their travels this season. At home Birmingham have accumulated a total of 26 points, whereas they’ve amassed nearly half-as-less as that away from home, with 14 points collected so far from away outings. It’s still very respectable for a club which were fancied for relegation at the start of the term by some punters, not us mind, but it does highlight a minor flaw, with their slightly lacklustre away efforts leaving them a tad exposed down South.

Moreover, Birmingham have lost their last three away fixtures whilst back in Premiership action, which isn’t ideal form heading into an away tie in the FA Cup, but, to our amazement, all of Birmingham’s three victories in the competition thus far came away from St. Andrews, with victory’s at Nott’m Forest, Everton and Derby County, all of which were by a familiar one goal margin. Their solid outlook on games has clearly paid dividends in this competition so far and who would back against them making it four away wins on the trot in this competition by beating Portsmouth at Fratton Park on Saturday?

Match Verdict: Portsmouth to WIN – 2.62 Bet365

The answer to the above question is us as we feel it could be the last memorable game down at Fratton Park for quite some time on Saturday, and we only hope it’s one to remember for all the right reasons for the home crowd. It’s hard to imagine the players can even focus at this moment in time but they shown last Saturday their heads are in the right frame of mind and that all they’re interested in once they get onto that pitch is winning matches, or at least trying to their utmost to do so. They weren’t classy on Saturday, nor were they entirely convincing – far from it – but they were gutsy and we will be one of many around the country to lend our sofa support on Saturday.

Our Bet: Over 2.5 Goals – 2.38 WilliamHill

There is only one outcome that would let us done on Saturday, and that’s a 1-1 draw. Portsmouth haven’t failed to score in a home fixture since September, while their defence looks so frail that Birmingham would have to be drastically poor not to score on Saturday, so goals look to be assured in a fixture that would normally look dull on paper. Portsmouth were fired up for their last round clash against Southampton but were extremely sluggish getting out of the blocks. A similarly poor start would almost certainly see Birmingham clinch an early lead. However, Birmingham have failed to keep a clean sheet in either of their previous two away outings in the cup and so goals looks a logical outcome. Two teams who will do all they can to win but two sides who will struggle to keep it neat and tidy at the back – Bring on the 3 Goals or More we say!

Match Odds:

Portsmouth – 2.62 Bet365

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Birmingham City – 2.75 PaddyPower

Birmingham City V Wigan Athletic

Saturday, 27^th February – 15:00 GMT

Birmingham City

League Position: 10th

Recent Form: LDWLL

Alex McLeish will be hoping Birmingham’s superb home form will stand his players in good stead as the take on a hapless Wigan Athletic on Saturday afternoon at St. Andrews, with the aim being to extend their unbeaten run at home to ten games. Not since September 26^th have Birmingham lost a home fixture – a streak stretching nearly five months – and they’ll surely feel supremely confident of at least reaching double figures with the visit of Wigan this Saturday in a fixture most punters will make them worthy match favourites.

The Premiership’s most improved team have been punching well above their weight in terms of results and their league position for a while now, but finally, Birmingham are starting to show signs of complacency, something we did predict would happen once their euphoric fifteen game unbeaten run came to end. On Saturday, Birmingham fell to their ninth defeat of the season, which does sound an awful lot for a side that went almost half of the current season without losing a game, when losing at Craven Cottage to a very solid Fulham side. It was a game Birmingham played very well in parts and actually went in at half-time with a lead. However, some stunning strikes from Fulham put Birmingham to the sword and the travellers that day eventually left the capital with nothing to show for their spirited efforts.

The defeat at the weekend to Fulham was their second on the bounce after losing eleven days earlier at West Ham. It was, however, yet another away defeat and they can take comfort from the fact they’ve been far more solid and consistent in front of their home fans than opposing supporters this term. Six of their ten league wins this season have come at St. Andrews, while the difference between the amounts lost at home and away is huge, with Birmingham losing just twice at home compared to the seven defeats they’ve suffered on the road. We wouldn’t go as far as to say St. Andrews has become a fortress, as Birmingham don’t exactly play enthralling football there, nor do they put teams to the sword. They are, however, an extremely tough side to beat at home, with only Aston Villa and Bolton managing such a feat this season. Even the likes of Chelsea & Arsenal have failed to get the better of a resilient Birmingham on their own patch, so what chance do their opponents, whom are having to fend off a relegation battle, have of joining this VIP list if you like of rare sides to have beaten Birmingham at home this season?

Alex McLeish will certainly pinpoint this fixture as one his team should secure all three points in; simply because Birmingham are very strong at home, while their opponents are pretty much useless all around. The small downer is that Birmingham have won just one of their previous four home games, with even that solitary and lonely victory coming against lowly Wolves by virtue of a late Kevin Philip’s double. But, however, along this run are creditable draws with Chelsea, Man Utd & Tottenham Hotspur, and so, if Birmingham can hold their own against those sort of sides, some of the best in the country, then they should surely make mince meat of a Wigan side that were comfortably beaten by Tottenham Hotspur over the weekend.

Wigan Athletic

League Position: 15th

Recent Form: LDDDL

While Birmingham are boasting a strong run of form at home, unbeaten in their last four, Wigan unwillingly have the very opposite in that they can’t buy a win wherever they go and are getting beaten by just about everyone, with even League Two’s very own Notts County getting in on the act this year. Their 3-0 home defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon was their thirteenth defeat of the season, four more than their match day opponents, but add this to the fact Wigan did lose the reverse meeting at The DW stadium and they really look a terrible betting proposition. Surprises do happen though, but you’d have to feel a minor miracle is perhaps required in order to drive Wigan towards their first league win since the middle of January.

Wigan were resoundingly beaten at the weekend when losing 3-0 to Tottenham, although it could have been a different story had Defoe’s first goal been chalked off rightly for off-side. However, the dubious goal stood and that typified Wigan’s season in that everything is going against them right now. To be fair, they rarely threatened Gomes in the Spurs goal and didn’t look as though they would snatch a point in a contest we didn’t fancy them did get much out of if truth be told. That is now the sixth game in a row where the Latics haven’t managed a win, and these pointless games are beginning to drag Wigan closer to the bottom three. 

The strange thing is Wigan might actually appreciate this trip away from The DW as the condition of their DW pitch is terrible due to both themselves and their local Rugby team using the pitch at alternating times. How any side can get the ball down and play football on that farm like ground is beyond me. This Wigan side, whom under the silky Guidance of a Spanish manager who desperately wants his players to play attractive on-the-ground football, will perhaps take to a much better surface at St. Andrews and could actually turn a few heads with a half-decent performance if they apply themselves correctly.

Wigan are a team which play their football completely on the ground, with slick inter-changing and slick through balls. They don’t have the height or aerial experience up front to really make use of the long ball tactic and it was the main reason why they didn’t compete on Saturday as they rarely got a shot in on goal. However, they should take to the St. Andrews surface quite nicely. While it’s not the best footballing surface in the world, it’s a whole lot better than theirs at current and we think Wigan might finally come out to play on Saturday. After all, they’ve scored slightly more goals away from The DW this season, and have won just as many games.

Match Verdict: Birmingham to WIN – 2.00 Bet365

It’s hard to oppose a Birmingham side with plenty of solid home form and momentum, so we haven’t. They don’t give the opposition any time or space on the bal, they force you to make costly mistakes and they punish you in the game defining moments. They’ll get a few chances on Saturday and we’re banking on them taking at least one of them, as, in reality, one goal would probably be enough considering how poor Wigan have been of late. However, the danger is Wigan will be playing on a smoother surface now, with no bumpy pitch of mole hills getting in their way. If they can somehow return to their free-flowing selves then perhaps a surprise could be on the cards. However, their form isn’t great, it’s actually very poor, while the confidence levels of the players must be at an all time low as the relegation looms over them after a six game run without a win, and so preference is for a more consistent Birmingham City.

Match Odds:

Birmingham City – 2.00 Bet365

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Wigan Athletic – 4.30 Boylesports

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Birmingham City to WIN by 1 Goal – 3.75 Bet365

Fulham V Birmingham City

Saturday, 20^th February – 12:45 GMT (Sky Sports 1)

Fulham

League Position: 10th

Recent Form: LLWDW

Fulham gave their form a much needed boost with victory over Notts County in the FA Cup on Sunday. Despite a nervy start from The Cottagers, Fulham eventually ran out comfortable and worthy winners in a 4-0 victory which sent them in the quarter-finals where Tottenham Hotspur or Bolton lay in waiting. However, it’s back to the Premiership now for Fulham and they will aim to build upon a three match unbeaten run, a run which is beginning to overshadow what was a dreadful month of January.  

Fulham are once again building up ahead of steam in the league and will go about reinforcing their top ten status on Saturday when they seek out their fourth win in five games, this does include their weekend success in the FA Cup. Two of those were in the league though, with victories coming against Portsmouth (1-0) and Burnley (2-0), both were to NIL but they were also both at Craven Cottage, a stadium which has been a happy hunting ground for them but a graveyard for some of the leagues biggest teams.

We think just about every Fulham fan has come to terms with the fact that Fulham aren’t the best away side in the division and that the vast majority of their points this season will and have come at home, at a fairly small Craven Cottage. However, this cosy little cottage of theirs hasn’t seen too many home defeats this season, just the three in fact, and to hear that Fulham have lost just once in ten home outings is an outstanding achievement for a club which was so regularly battling to avoid relegation previous campaigns. It also goes to show just how far Roy Hodgeson has taken this Fulham side in such a short space of time.

As far as this fixture goes, against what is a resilient Birmingham City, Fulham do have solid claims for the win but will have to work mighty hard to earn all three points. Their opponents are a stubborn side which tend not to give away cheap goals. Much like Fulham at home in fairness. However, we would give Fulham the edge simply because they can be a match for anyone on their day when at Craven Cottage, and the proof is in the pudding with victories over Liverpool, Manchester United & Everton this season.

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: DLDWL 

We briefly praised Roy Hodgeson for his efforts but it’s nothing in comparison to the job Alex McLeish has done with a budgeted Birmingham side, guiding them into the upper tier of the Premiership table. Just to hear that Birmingham are two places above Fulham in the table would make any Birmingham fan proud but defeat for McLeish & Co on Saturday would seem them fall below their match day opponents and possibly lye in 10^th position for the remainder of the week, which I’m sure Birmingham fans could live with but it’s something they’d like to avoid at all costs.

We’ve been praising Birmingham for their work rate and effort for months now but the cracks are starting to appear and their immense middle part of the season could be just as well as the chinks in their armour start to show. Since relinquishing their unbeaten status of fifteen games without defeat, twelve in the league, Birmingham have won just one of three, Winning 1, Drawing 1 and Losing 1. While this may not appear at all bad, nor concerning, that one draw really should have been a defeat while their latest display was that of a well below par side when they lost 2-0 at West Ham United. A team struggling near the foot of the table.

Don’t get us wrong, we’re far from panicking. It’s just that now they’ve lost all their momentum, their confidence appears to have sapped right out of them and they don’t appear to have this winning edge to them any more. However, one thing we will credit them on is their never-give-up attitude, one which has earned them valuable points in recent fixtures alone. They had to search within for a second wind in their two most recent home games with Tottenham Hotspur & Wolves. The former seen Birmingham nod home an injury time equaliser to avoid back-to-back defeats for the first since in well over four months, while the latter seen them claw back a one goal deficit to win a game they probably didn’t deserve to win 2-1.

The dampener, though, was their defeat at Upton Park and we aren’t quite sure how Birmingham will respond to that defeat. However, they did answer with a win at Derby County on Saturday, albeit pulling off another comeback when coming from a goal down to win once again by a 2-1 scoreline. However, while all these fight backs look good on paper and do bring your group of players closer together, there will come a time when going a goal down will result in game over and this really could be the case at Craven Cottage. Fulham have yet to drop any points from a winning position at home this season, which just spells out the importance of not conceding the first goal if you’re a Birmingham fan.

Match Verdict: Fulham to WIN – 2.15 bWin

These two teams could quite easily cancel each other out as they both have similar qualities in that they’re both extremely solid outfits, reliable in defence and clinical in attack. Mistakes don’t often crop up in either sides play but we feel home advantage will separate the two on Saturday. Fulham boast one of the strongest home records in England and will take some beating in front of their home fans. The only negative points from their end if their Europa League clash on Thursday night and whether Hodgeson puts out a strong side. Then again, Fulham should still be equipped and fit enough to handle a home fixture and we quite fancy their chances of winning their fourth home fixture on the bounce and sending Birmingham to their first set of back-to-back defeats since October.

Match Odds:

Fulham – 2.15 bWin

Draw – 3.30 Bet365

Birmingham City – 3.75 SkyBet

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Fulham to be winning at Half-Time – 2.90 SportingBet

Derby County V Birmingham City

Saturday, 13^th February – 15:00 GMT

Derby County

FA Cup Outright Odds: 250/1 bWin

The Rams will be looking to put their poor league campaign to one side on Saturday as they entertain Premiership side Birmingham City in the fifth round of the FA Cup. It’s been a stop-start sort of season for Derby County fans, mainly just stop in fairness, but, however, their form of late has greatly improved, especially at home, so perhaps a big victory is in the offing as Derby aim to put their name into the draw for the quarter-finals.

It’s been a poor season for Derby County and their fans as their dreams of promotion back to the top flight appear just that; a dream, with The Rams currently languishing down in 13^th position in the league table. Just as close to the bottom as they are to the top. However, they are on the road to redemption after a three match unbeaten run in The Championship. A run which the fans will be hoping just might be the springboard the players need to put in a big display on Saturday. Hopefully a winning one! They’ve now won two of their last three in the league, wins which were both mighty impressive as they came over the top two teams in the division; beating Nottingham Forest 1-0 & Newcastle United 3-0, with their stunning and emphatic 3-0 win over the Magpies their most recent success.

The Rams were sublime in midweek as they obliterated Newcastle’s unbeaten league run of fifteen games with a 3-0 win at Pride Park. That was Derby’s second successive win at home and Pride Park has been the setting for many happy memory’s this season, just about all of them in fact, with eight of their ten league wins coming in front of their home fans – A big plus point for any potential Derby backer. However, Stephen Bywater in the Derby goal hasn’t celebrated too many clean sheets this season, even at home, with their two against Nott’m Forest & Newcastle United being their first since October.

Derby really need a platform – a big result – so they can build a serious play-off bid. Victory on Saturday, over the Premiership’s surprise package, would surely give them that but their defence does make them a precarious proposition against a side which often punishes lacklustre defending. Still, Derby’s two previous victories in this tournament just to get this far did come at Pride Park, so perhaps home is where the heart as far as Derby are concerned.

Birmingham City

FA Cup Outright Odds: 15/1 PaddyPower

Alex McLeish must be licking his lips at the prospect of making a rare quarter-final appearance in the world’s oldest domestic cup competition. To get this far is an achievement in itself but, considering they’ve been granted a generous looking fixture here, you would have to feel exit now would be heartbreak for the Birmingham team in what looks their easiest fixture in this competition to date. However, while the players will be supremely confident over their chances of winning Saturday’s clash, they mustn’t let their arrogance become an issue, and we don’t think it will.

Birmingham have been by far and away the most improved team this season, arguably in the country. To go on a fifteen match unbeaten run in all competitions in just your first spell in the Premiership, albeit not their maiden one after gaining promotion on what seems an ‘every-other-year’ basis, is outstanding and a credit to every member of staff at the club. Much of their success has been largely down to their solid set up, their rock-hard defence and their ability to win tight games with scrappy and ugly goals. Well, against a Derby side who have been very tidy of late, Birmingham may need to show all the qualities that has made them such a success this season if they are to progress into the quarter-final draw.

After losing their grip on their twelve match unbeaten league run via defeat to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, many were apprehensive about how Birmingham would fare in their following fixtures. However, they responded will, possibly not with their performances but certainly with results, earning a home draw with Tottenham Hotspur (1-1) and beating Wolves (2-1) at the weekend. However, their displays in both will be seen as a double-edged sword as Birmingham weren’t up to scratch in either but pulled off a valiant comeback in both. They have, though, conceded the opening goal in both of their last two outings and it took the players an awful long time to respond in both encounters. Now, Derby have been very clinical of late, much like Birmingham have throughout the season, and if Birmingham do concede the opening goal then there might not be anyway back for this never-give-up Birmingham side.

It’s also worth bearing in mind that Birmingham have had to come through two tough away fixtures to get this far having beaten Nottingham Forest at The City Ground during Forest’s lengthy unbeaten period before then pulling another rabbit out of the hat with victory at Goodison Park, beating Everton 2-1.

How they got here?

Derby County

Drew Millwall 1-1 (A)

Beat Millwall via a Penalty Shoot-out 5-3 (H)

Beat Doncaster Rovers 1-0 (H)

Birmingham City

Beat Nottingham Forest 1-0 (A)

Beat Everton 2-1 (A)

Match Verdict: Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

This is a fixture you’ll do best to avoid as we’ve found it extremely difficult to split the two. Derby have hit a decent bit of form, winning their last two at home, while Birmingham, although have been shaky of late, are still proving a tough nut to crack. The away side have a never-die attitude which has stood them in good stead in the Premiership and might be why they will be the winners of this contest on Saturday. However, their performances haven’t been at the level which seen them enjoy a fifteen match unbeaten run and we feel another below par display could see them exit this tournament at the fifth round stage. Then again, after watching Derby throughout most of the season, they could quite easily turn the Rams over. This is, quite literally, anyone’s game.

Match Odds:

Derby County – 3.50 SkyBet

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Birmingham City – 2.30 Expekt

SoccerBetting Tip: Under 2.5 Goals – 1.65 Expekt

Birmingham City V Wolverhampton Wanderers

Sunday, 7^th February – 13:30 GMT

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: DWDLD

Finally… After fifteen games, twelve of which were Premiership fixtures, Birmingham fell to defeat as Chelsea ended the clubs most impressive run in it’s history by beating Birmingham 3-0 at Stamford Bridge, just over a week ago in what was a comfortable evening for the London outfit. However, that defeat was so nearly followed up with another when they went mere minutes away from falling to their second defeat in quick succession at home to Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend, eventually drawing 1-1 via an injury time equaliser. The defeat to Chelsea has perhaps got the Birmingham squad rocking but they have a very easy assignment on Sunday when they aim to make a return to winning ways by welcoming the only team that finished above them in The Championship last season – Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Alex McLeish didn’t have much luck in January, with Birmingham not managing a win that month and several of their bids for some high profile individuals being turned down by various clubs. The Scotsman has quickly come to the conclusion that Birmingham aren’t as strong in the final third as he would like. However, he could only watch on with despair as bids for Ryan Babel & Roman Pavlyuchenko got rejected by Liverpool & Tottenham respectively. To be fair, it wasn’t surprising that McLeish did target some forwards as Birmingham, despite previously enjoying a glorious unbeaten run of twelve games in the league, have looked very weak up top in front of goal, with the last time Birmingham scored two or more in a Premiership fixture coming back in December when they beat Blackburn 2-1 at St. Andrews. They have since failed to surpass the one goal marker in their last six league games and their finishing on Sunday against Spurs was the evidence to back up their poor goalscoring antics this season.

Although their unbeaten run did come to an end a little over a week ago, Birmingham are still undefeated at St. Andrews since the 26^th September, 2009 when they lost 2-1 to Bolton. They haven’t lost a league fixture in front of their home fans in eight games; Winning 4, Drawing 4. However, although this home run of theirs is still alight, they haven’t won at home since the middle of December, drawing their last three home fixtures. Then again, all were against stiff opposition; Chelsea (0-0), Man Utd (1-1) & their latest being Tottenham Hotspur (1-1). All three draws would look worthy results on anyone’s results list but Wolves are one of the weakest teams in the league and questions will be asked of their mental toughness were they not to win on Sunday as doubts will arise over whether Birmingham are still feeling the affects of their Chelsea heartache. 

On face value, and the way Birmingham have gone about their business for most of this season, this should be a home win, although we don’t think it will be a walk in the park as Birmingham don’t win games comfortably. We’ve mentioned this fact, or run, so many times and until it changes we won’t stop mentioning it as it’s a possible moneymaker – All of Birmingham’s nine victories in the league have been by a 1 goal margin, with six being 1-0 wins. That’s a staggering statistic as you could of made a fortune betting on Birmingham to win by one goal this season. Also, Birmingham did beat Wolves 1-0 at Molineux earlier in the season… We think a predictable pattern has been formed!

Wolverhampton Wanderers

League Position: 17th

Recent Form: LLLDD

This losing trend of theirs has come to end and has been halted by a pair of draws, two decent ones as well. Mick McCarthy will pin his hopes of his sides draws with Liverpool & Hull City building some momentum as they will need plenty of it heading to St. Andrews. The incentive though, as if they needed one with the club so perilously close to the relegation zone, is to avenge the defeat they suffered at the hands of Birmingham back in November when they lost 1-0 at Molineux. However, that defeat catapulted Wolves into winning three of their following four league games and they’ll be hoping a win over Birmingham will send them on their way onto another point baring run.

Wolves have had to work damn hard in their recent outings, frustrating Liverpool at Molineux in a goalless draw and then giving Hull a good scare at The KC last Sunday, earning a 2-2 draw. The draw wasn’t the best of results as it was a game they could of won on paper, but it did, nevertheless, add a vital point to their cause and it does mean Wolves are now unbeaten in two, which could be the start of a prosperous run, and so long as they avoid defeat on Sunday, Wolves will equal their longest unbeaten run this season of three games with at least a point in this contest. 

The stumbling block, when deciding whether or not to have a punt on Wolves, is just where and how their goals will be scored. Their strikers simply aren’t cut out for the Premiership, even Kevin Doyle who has been their shining light this season, and this has been evident all season. The Wolves’ have scored just 19 league goals this season, averaging under a-goal-a-game and their two goals at Hull last Sunday ended a four match run without scoring a league goal. However, their goals on Sunday weren’t without a bit of good fortune, with their first being a freaky own goal and their second coming from the spot. So, in reality, Wolves still haven’t scored from open play in over 450 minutes of Premiership football.

We feel it’s asking too much of Wolves to win at St. Andrews this Sunday as we can’t see them scoring to make this a competitive affair. Their best option is playing for the draw, but they won’t do that as they will feel this is a fixture they have every right of winning. However, Birmingham have one of the leanest defensive records in the league, home and away, and it will take some doing outscoring Birmingham on their own patch. Still, we mustn’t forget Wolves did produce one of the shocks of the season when they beat Tottenham 1-0 at White Hart Lane, so, miracles can happen?!

Match Verdict: Birmingham City to WIN – 1.85 Expekt

We don’t like backing draws unless it’s too close to call and we wouldn’t feel comfortable wasting any money on a Wolves punt so Birmingham get the nod to make a brisk return to winning ways at Wolves’ expense. We think it will be close, with another one goal margin victory perhaps on the cards for the home side, but we can’t see Wolves breaking down a tough and robust Birmingham defence, and then sticking it past one of the goalkeepers of the season, Joe Hart, and so the preference is for Birmingham City of whom don’t score too many goals themselves but one goal on Sunday really should be enough to see off a weak looking Wolves.

Match Odds:

Birmingham City – 1.85 Expekt

Draw – 3.50 Boylesports

Wolverhampton Wanderers – 5.00 Bet365

SoccerBetting Value Pick: Birmingham City to WIN by 1 Goal – 3.60 Bet365

Birmingham City V Tottenham Hotspur

Saturday, 30^th January – 15:00 GMT

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: DDWDL

Now it gets interesting as Birmingham aim to bounce right back after suffering their first defeat in fifteen games. Their first in twelve Premiership outings. The task always looked far too big, even for the league most improved side, but it’s been apparent for a while that the players were thriving on this confidence booming run and now the spotlight really will be on them to see if the defeat at Chelsea does send Birmingham spiralling.

A large part of why Birmingham never came close to causing a upset at Stamford Bridge was Chelsea’s brillant start to the game and Birmingham’s willingness to allow Chelsea to strut their stuff for the entire first half. The home side were 2-0 up come the break and by the time Birmingham finally started to play the sort of football which had built such an impressive undefeated run it was too late. Alex Mcleish could only watch on come the end as his side lost 3-0, their first defeat in the league for over three months.

The hangover period now begins but they’ve been fortunate in that their next league game is a home fixture, although their opponents have regained their form after winning 2-0 in their last league outing, beating Fulham 2-0 at White Hart Lane. Moreover, Birmingham lost the reverse encounter with Tottenham 2-1, and so Spurs are on the verge of completing a league double over Birmingham. Two defeats on the spin after only enjoying the highs in recent months could have a devastating affect on team morale and so Mcleish will drill it home just how significant a game this is with Spurs and how important getting a result will be in terms of their season.

Although they were on the wrong end of a rare league low in midweek, we mustn’t forget that Birmingham haven’t lost a home fixture since the middle of September, eight home fixtures ago. They have since drawn three and won five and still boast very strong form heading into this tough fixture, albeit with a defeat firmly behind them. Moreover, the likes of Man City, Man Utd & Chelsea have all paid St. Andrews a visit this season, with only Man Utd actually finding Birmingham’s net, with both Chelsea & Man City failing to score. All were, however, draws.

Tottenham Hotspur

League Position: 4th

Recent Form: DWDLW

Tottenham, unlike their opponents, will be feeling great after overcoming a recent blip in results by stamping their authority in a game with Fulham, beating the Cottager’s 2-0 at White Hart Lane. That victory, one that came after a bitter draw with Leeds United, reinforced their top four bid and now Tottenham will be full of confidence as the three points on Tuesday night opened up a three point gap on their nearest pursuer, Liverpool. Now Tottenham have a bit of breathing space and perhaps this will release the pressure shackles.  

Spurs were fully deserving of their 2-0 success over Fulham in midweek as their performance was a match winning one, which is an obvious statement considering their ran out comfortable 2-0 winners. However, despite their opponents lacking away form, questions were being asked over whether Spurs were suffering a lull in team spiirt and confidence after their 2-0 defeat at Anfield earlier in the month was quickly followed by a 2-2 draw with League One outfit, Leeds United, in the FA Cup. Also, Spurs do have the burden of a replay with Leeds just over the horizon and so a lack of concentration wouldn’t of been a surprise. However, Tottenham responded in the perfect manner and the victory over their London rivals could be yet another building block for a successful run.

The only concern from a Tottenham front is that Harry Redknapp may have one eye on their replay with Leeds on Wednesday night, a game shown live on ITV1. However, we don’t expect for one minute that Redknapp will field a weakened side at St. Andrews as finishing in the top four, above the likes of Liverpool, Aston Villa & Man City, is their main priority this season and, if anything, Leeds will get the easy treatment. Tottenham, who have a host of teams breathing down their necks, can ill-afford to drop any points and so they will go all out for the win in this encounter with Birmingham, and will be gunning for a league double over Birmingham after beating the Blues 2-1 earlier in the season.

If you’re looking for a serious negative to put you right off a Tottenham back then look no further then this statistic – Tottenham Hotspur have won just one of their last six away league fixtures, with that sole victory coming at Blackburn Rovers. Also, Tottenham haven’t managed a goal in their previous two outings in the league and have now gone over 240 minutes without a goal on their travels.

Match Verdict: Tottenham Hotspur to WIN – 2.50 BlueSquare

Birmingham impressive form at St. Andrews this season has to be respected, having not lost at home in their last eight, but Tottenham were a classy outfit on Wednesday night and when they’re in form they’ve proved a difficult team to stop this season. They have plenty of quality in attack to uncoil a tight and compact Birmingham defence, it could be a case of whether Tottenham can keep it tight at their end. If so, a Tottenham win could be on the cards. Birmingham could very well bounce back from their midweek disappointment, but we feel they’re a side beat left alone for the time being as you don’t quite know how they’ll react to a defeat which crushed a 15 match unbeaten run.

Match Odds:

Birmingham City – 3.25 Bet365

Draw – 3.40 Boylesports

Tottenham Hotspur – 2.50 BlueSquare

SoccerBetting Value Pick: Tottenham Hotspur to WIN to NIL – 5.00 totesport

Chelsea V Birmingham City

Wednesday, 27^th January – 19:45 GMT

Chelsea

League Position: 3rd

Recent Form: WDDWW

Chelsea were at their clinical best on Saturday as the swept aside Preston North End, winning 2-0, to book their place in the fifth round where Cardiff City now await them. That does appear another very generous draw for Chelsea and so this should enable Carlo Ancelotti to put most of his attention and concentration into the league and plotting how Chelsea will overhaul the new leaders of the Premiership, Manchester United. The blues now find themselves playing second fiddle, which is something they aren’t accustomed to this season, but a win could see them regain top spot as the leaders have played two games more than Chelsea.

For Chelsea to go into this weekends fixtures as ‘Top Dog’ they would need Arsenal to come a cropper in their midweek outing at Villa Park. Considering Chelsea came unstuck at Villa Park earlier in the season, an Arsenal setback isn’t out of the question. However, Chelsea can’t afford to let their minds stray elsewhere as they must get the job done themselves. The task, though, won’t be easy as some think as Birmingham are right up their in the form table, with only Arsenal bettering Birmingham’s recent form. Alex McLeish has guided Birmingham to a fifteen match unbeaten run in all competitions, twelve of which have been in the league, but Chelsea are more than equipped to obliterate such a run and we feel they’ll do just that on Wednesday night.  

Stamford Bridge has been a happy hunting ground for Chelsea this season, which won’t raise any eyebrows. In eleven home fixtures only Everton have left the Bridge with their pride still intact, with Chelsea boasting a remarkably strong home record of 10-1-0. Even two giants of English football; Liverpool & Manchester United, have both come unstuck away at Chelsea, which just highlights the task in front of Birmingham and how intimidating a record Chelsea have at home. Moreover, their record becomes even more daunting when you see that Chelsea have found the goal on 34 occasions at home in just 11 games, averaging over 3 goals a game at Stamford Bridge.

The flaws for Chelsea has been in their defence, which is a surprise as it looked impenetrable in the early stages of the season. At home, Chelsea have conceded eight goals, which is solid enough. However, Petr Cech in the Chelsea goal hasn’t kept a clean sheet in his last three starts at Stamford Bridge, conceding one to Portsmouth, one to Fulham and two to Sunderland. All of which were sloppy goals and all were a cause of bad defending. A usually well organised Chelsea defence has been all over the place of late and they were lucky not to concede at Preston on Saturday. There are gaps in that Chelsea defence, ones which can be exploited, but Chelsea spend so much time on the ball, such is their ability to dominate games, that it doesn’t come as much of a problem. However, there is certainly room for improvement with this Chelsea side and they are far from unbeatable… even at home.

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: WDDWD 

Birmingham will be full of confidence, which is nothing new as they’ve been having a whale of a time for a while now. Not since mid-October have Birmingham lost a game of football and this has led to a surge of momentum at the club which helped them bypass a very tricky FA Cup tie at Everton, with ease it has to be said. Birmingham made relatively light work of Everton on Saturday, but they will be given a far sterner test on Wednesday night as the prepare themselves for a Chelsea onslaught. 

It’s quite remarkable the run of form Birmingham are in at the moment. It’s the longest in the clubs history, which is a credit to both the players and the manager, but it’s not actually come as that much of a surprise, although the length of their unbeaten run has. From their very first outing (a 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford), Birmingham shaped up as a team that would easily avoid relegation because they looked extremely solid and hard to break down. Every single players works hard for one another and each individual knows the importance of keeping this morale oozing run going. However, to maintain it for so long takes some doing but the bookies haven’t shown Birmingham any respect whatsoever, even with this staggering run of theirs.

According to the bookies Birmingham are huge underdogs, which seems a little harsh considering Birmingham gave Chelsea a rough ride in the reverse fixture at St. Andrews. A game Birmingham should have won were it not for a dubious disallowed goal. Of course, Birmingham thrived on the fabulous support of their home fans that day but they’ve shown no sign of weakness in their away games of late to indicate that they will simply roll over and justify their huge 14/1 price tag. Birmingham are unbeaten in five away outings in the league, winning three of them, and have an Everton victory at the weekend as one of their more glamorous away scalps for the season. It will, of course, be a big ask and we agree that Chelsea should be firm favourites, but Birmingham do look way overpriced and we wouldn’t discourage anyone from having a wee punt on the Scotsman, Alex McLeish, getting another valiant performance out of his players.  

If Birmingham are to produce a shock, by that we mean beat Chelsea, then they will need to produce their biggest display of the season, and that would take some doing. However, the way Birmingham set up does mean a surprising away victory isn’t completely out of the question. Alex Mcleish will set his side up to defend, that’s a given, he will ask his players, especially his midfielders, to close Chelsea down and not to allow them any time on the ball. He will try to nullify the spaces available to Chelsea and to keep the Birmingham defence compact at all times. However, where Birmingham have been dangerous this season has been on the counter and from set-plays, and Chelsea have been made to look foolish from set-pieces this season, so perhaps a shock is a worthwhile punt at 14/1?!

Head-to-Head:

Chelsea W: 6 Birmingham City W: 0 Draws: 3

•  In nine previous meetings, Birmingham have never beaten Chelsea in the Premiership. 

•  Chelsea have won three of the last four home fixtures with Birmingham, winning the last 3-2 back in August, 2007. 

•  Birmingham’s best effort away at Stamford Bridge was a 1-1 draw in April, 2005. 

• In nine meetings with Chelsea, Birmingham have only managed four goals, although three have come at Stamford Bridge.

Match Verdict: Chelsea to WIN – 1.26 Expekt.com

This will be a tough game for both sides but we see Chelsea as the victorious side. Chelsea haven’t been playing sublime football of late but they’ve been clinical and assertive in their games without their missing African contingents. Birmingham will be supremely confident heading to London after a huge 15 match run without losing a game. However, this is their toughest away fixture left to play and it’s asking a lot from Birmingham to maintain their unbeaten run by avoiding defeat at Stamford Bridge. The only qualm with Chelsea is that Frank Lampard limped off at the weekend but he should be available for Ancelotti, while Nicolas Anelka is more than accomplished to spoils Birmingham’s run as he showed with his goal-baring display at Preston. Chelsea to overpower Birmingham!

Match Odds:

Chelsea – 1.26 Expekt.com

Draw – 6.00 SkyBet

Birmingham City – 15.00 Bet365

SoccerBetting Value Pick: Nicolas Anelka Anytime Scorer – 2.05 VCbet

Everton V Birmingham

Saturday, 23^rd January – 15:00 GMT

Everton

FA Cup Progress: BEAT Carlisle (H3-1)

With a new year comes a fresh new start and well… that wasn’t possible with Everton as their poor position in the deeper half of the table meant the first quarter at least of 2010 would be spent chasing points. However, Everton have made just about the perfect start after picking up four points from their opening two league fixtures of the year; drawing at Arsenal (2-2) and beating Man City (2-0). The pair of results merit a lot of respect and they round off a seven match unbeaten run for the Toffee’s that stretches back November.

It has been a difficult season for everyone involved at the club. David Moyes has had to deal with the Joeleon Lescott saga and so did the players, while the fans have had to endure some terrible performances from their side, but all this appears to be a thing of the past as Everton are showing huge signs of improving, with their draw with Arsenal backed up by a superb 2-0 win at home to Man City. The latter game I watched from start to finish and Everton arguably put in their best shift as a team of the campaign. They had to work extremely hard in defence, they kept their shape when not on the ball and when they did get on the ball they bombed forward at such a pace that it even scared me. The winning margin should have been far greater than two come the end as Everton hit the woodwork twice late one but the three points are all that matters as Everton continue their climb back up the table and back into European contention.

Players thrive on positive results and in the early part of the season, Everton, were severely suffering a case of low self-esteem after a dreadful start to the campaign which ended up with them becoming a possible relegation candidate. However, Everton have proved just what a decent run can do to the morale of the camp as David Moyes’ men look to have found a new lease of life since Christmas, and with players arriving back from injury Everton should be the force of old, the force that seen them finish in fifth position last year.

From a statistical point of view, the omens are good for Everton after winning on their previous two visits to Goodison Park, the home of Everton. They’ve only lost twice at home all season but were struggling for wins before the visit of Burnley just before the new year. They beat the Claret’s 2-0 and that result, which was their first win in seven games, appears to have been the catalyst for bigger and better thing from Everton ever since as they pulled out two huge performances and results against Arsenal & Man City to stretch their unbeaten run in the league to seven. Their last two home games both went in their favour, both finishing 2-0, and perhaps Goodison is returning to it’s old fortress self?

Birmingham City

FA Cup Progress: BEAT Nottingham Forest (A1-1, H1-0)

Birmingham were given the week off after their game with Portsmouth was called off so, in theory anyway, the Birmingham players should be the fresher set of players… but will this extra energy equate into FA Cup progression as they will need to work their socks off just to get a result at Goodison Park, the home of a rejuvenated Everton. City did, however, hold Everton to a 1-1 draw back in December but they’ll be gunning for the victory this time around as neither side will want to play yet another fixture on top of the crucial games they still have to play in the Premiership. 

A draw wouldn’t be the end of the world for Birmingham but it would still be a hindrance. Birmingham are flying high in the league; unbeaten in twelve and sat rather cosily in eighth position. In fact, Birmingham are just five points adrift of the Champions League placed which just goes to show how far the club has come since the start of the season. However, this rich vein of success that the club is enjoying at present is due to the supremely high confidence levels of the players after this mesmerizing run of form, but soon enough their record breaking run will come to an end and defeat at Goodison could send the club into a downward spiral, which is why getting at least a draw at Goodison Park is so important as it could have a lasting effect on their Premiership season

Birmingham haven’t lost an away outing since they were knocked out of the Carling Cup by Sunderland back in September. The club then went on a three match losing streak and it took a 2-1 victory at home to Sunderland to repair the damage and stop the rut. Birmingham have since gone on a twelve match unbeaten run but that defeat in the Carling Cup proved that Birmingham can instantly be drained of confidence after a defeat. At the moment they are flying-high, with even the country’s finest coming unstuck against them, but Birmingham will definitely meet their match on Saturday as Everton have raced through the gears in recent weeks and look a side more than capable of ending Birmingham’s unbeaten and confidence booming run.

For the time being anyway, Birmingham have a group of players playing out of their skin and are full of confidence. They have plenty of momentum, far more than Everton in fact, and are more than capable themselves of recording another big result. After all, they’ve won three of their last four away fixtures in the league, beating Wolves (0-1), Wigan (2-3) and Stoke City (0-1). However, slap bang in the middle of this winning run was a 1-1 draw with their Saturday opponents, Everton, and so the Toffee’s proved that Birmingham are stoppable but actually beating a tough, stubborn and robust Birmingham was still a step too far for them, at the time…

Match Verdict: Everton to WIN – 1.87 Boylesports

We really fancy Everton’s chances after watching their latest performances. They were unbelievably good away at Arsenal and deserved more than just a draw, while they were in a rampant mood at home to Man City last weekend, winning 2-0 in a game they should have scored several more. In attack is where Everton have looked far more lively in recent weeks, especially Steven Pienaar who has now scored in his last two outings. Everton are now getting forward not only at an alarming rate but also in large numbers, and it appears David Moyes is no longer setting his side up in a negative manner and is duly reaping the rewards. Also, the only goals Everton have conceded in 270 minutes of play were the two at The Emirates, but yet even those two goals were due to bad luck on Everton’s part as they were nasty deflections.

Everton are playing so much better now and are rapidly building up ahead of steam and a positive run in the cup, continuing with a victory over Birmingham, would go some to way to apologising to the fans for their abysmal showing in the first part of the season.

Match Odds:

Everton – 1.87 Boylesports

Draw – 3.50 SkyBet

Birmingham City – 4.50 PaddyPower

SoccerBetting Value Tip: Everton to WIN to NIL – 3.10 PaddyPower

Portsmouth V Birmingham

Saturday, 16^th January – 15:00 GMT

Portsmouth

League Position: 20th

Recent Form: DLWDD

Portsmouth have never lost a home fixture with Birmingham in the Premiership but will be hard pressed to maintain such a run this Saturday as the leagues most in form team arrive for action at Fratton Park. Portsmouth, one of the more lightweight teams in the Premiership, could now be described as depleted as five squad members leave for African duties, some being key players, indeed. With their fixture last weekend postponed, we are waiting to see how a poor Portsmouth now perform without some of their better players.

Kanu, Nadir Belhadj, John Utaka & Aruna Dindane will all be missing for Portsmouth through the course of January and that will leave a huge dent in what was already a weak and lightweight Portsmouth squad. However, the show must go on and all that but this month could define their season and how they will actually fare in their fight to avoid the drop as a bad month of January could quite literally spell the end for Portsmouth as we know it. They are crippled with debt and relegation from the top flight really could be the ‘be all and end all’.

A home fixture with an in form Birmingham City isn’t great… but it’s one that could bare fruit. However, Portsmouth have gone back into their shell in the last month or so, losing three of their last four in the league whilst only managing two draws with Coventry City in the FA Cup before eventually going through after a late show in Extra-time. They’ve been far from convincing in their performances, which isn’t something I’ve said too often this season despite an influx of defeats as Pompey, on the whole, have actually played pretty well in games. But that hasn’t been the case of late and this was the case in both their defeats to West Ham (2-0) & Arsenal (1-4), with the latter not only emphatic but embarrassing for the fans.

The only positive for Portsmouth fans really is that they can score far more goals at home than they can away from Fratton Park, scoring eight more at home than on their travels this season. However, now they are without Aruna Dindane, a double edged sword in some ways as although he did get into very good goalscoring opportunities he didn’t half fluff a lot of them, while John Utaka pace will also sadly be missed. Avram Grant is now down to the bare bone and he now requires players with character, grit and determination to get him through a difficult month starting with them getting some sort of a result at home to Birmingham City.

Birmingham City

League Position: 8th

Recent Form: WDDWD

Birmingham have proven to be untouchable at present and have been so for some time now, close to three months in fact, but we don’t think they’ll meat a team more hungry for points than their opponents this Saturday in bottom of the league Portsmouth at Fratton Park. However, even with that said it’s worth baring in mind that Birmingham haven’t lost any away fixture since the middle of October so they are more than equipped to handle anything the Southerner’s may have to offer.

It’s going to be a long trip down for Birmingham players and fans alike but they’ll have high hopes of it being a fruitful venture considering their vast amounts of success they’ve been enjoying of late. This Birmingham side, whom only managed second place in The Championship last season, have gone unbeaten in the league for 12 games and this impressive run has shown no signs of stopping. Even the might Manchester United couldn’t slay Birmingham as the pair played out a 1-1 draw in one of just three fixtures that went ahead over the weekend.

This run of theirs is magnificent but it’s some of the teams that they’ve come up against and held their on against that has taken us back the most. Man City (H0-0), Liverpool (A2-2), Everton (A1-1), Chelsea (H0-0) and their most recent was a 1-1 draw at home to Man Utd. Even some of the countries very best have faltered against the mite of Birmingham but in hindsight those were easier games to get motivated for and a trip to Portsmouth could possibly bring about some complacency from the Birmingham ranks… possibly. 

Birmingham have been outstanding against the big teams this season and have more than held their own in most clashes. However, a fixture with a struggling Portsmouth is a different kettle of fish as Birmingham won’t be the underdog in this clash but more the favourite which is unusual for them. It’s also a game where the players will be supremely confident of earning all three points from, and rightly so, but if they do begin to underestimate Portsmouth, a side who are desperate for any type of result, then they could leave Fratton Park with their tails between their legs.

After going 12 games unbeaten, winning seven and drawing five, it will seem a tad bizarre that we’re apprehensive about this outing for Birmingham but, whether it’s one of those uncontrollable gut feelings, something is telling me Birmingham might not have it all their own way in this fixture. They’ve been used to having to work hard and defending in numbers but that won’t be the case at Fratton Park. We can just see Birmingham heading down over-confident of their chances and coming a cropper.

Match Verdict: Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Birmingham have been outstanding this season but this is a game where Portsmouth have to win and should be fighting tooth and nail for every single point. However, that doesn’t mean Pompey are entitled to all the spoils, certainly not, but it should mean a big performance is to be expected from them as every lost game significantly decreases their chances of avoiding the drop and this is a fixture that could provide them with at least a point. Birmingham will be full of confidence after their hard fought draw with Man Utd last weekend off the back of a 12 match unbeaten run, but this trip to Portsmouth brings about a different kind of test for them and it will be interesting to see if they rise or sink. Not a game we’re getting overly excited about hence the draw selection.

Match Odds:

Portsmouth – 2.80 Boylesports

Draw – 3.40 SkyBet

Birmingham City – 2.75 Bet365

SoccerBetting Value Tip: 1-1 Correct Score – 7.00 SkyBet