Portsmouth vs Birmingham

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

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