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Championship | Gameweek 23
Jan 2, 2021 at 3pm UK
St. Andrew's Stadium
BL

Birmingham
0 - 2
Blackburn


Sanchez (85')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Armstrong (10'), Dack (90+1')
Travis (39'), Douglas (81'), Armstrong (83')

Preview: Birmingham City vs. Blackburn Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups

:Headline: Preview: Birmingham City vs. Blackburn Rovers - prediction, team news, lineups:
Sports Mole previews Saturday's Championship clash between Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Sports Mole

Blackburn Rovers travel to St Andrew's to face Birmingham City on Saturday as they look to overcome a poor run of form that has seen them slip down the table.

Rovers were narrowly beaten in midweek by a Huddersfield Town team that leapfrogged them in the table after a 2-1 home win, while City were hammered by a revived Derby County side who ran out 4-0 winners.


Match preview

Wherever Aitor Karanka has managed, he has always set about building his teams on a strong defensive foundation. So it will be surprising to some that the Blues have conceded 12 in their last five, twice conceding four goals at home.

Only at the start of December were City coming off the back of two noteworthy wins over Bristol City and Reading, but have since slumped to no wins in their last five, comprising of four losses and a draw.

What is worse, they are now being dragged into a relegation fight and are now only seven points clear of 22nd place with teams below them starting to pick up points.

One thing that does fall in Karanka's favour is City's extended good run of form against Rovers, which consists of only one loss in their last 12 league meetings.

The Blues will hope to start the year on a positive note, and avoid losing in their first match of the calendar year for consecutive seasons for the first time since 2007 and 2008, after losing 3-2 to Wigan Athletic last January.

Tony Mowbray will hope that 2021 will bring more fortune on the injury front, while some added consistency would not go amiss either after what has been an up-and-down season so far for Rovers.

They find themselves in 14th place and have lost their last three away matches on the bounce having scored only one goal in that run.

Mowbray will likely highlight his side's defensive frailties as an area for improvement, having not kept a clean sheet in their preceding nine straight games, while Rovers have also secured only one clean sheet at St Andrew's in the past 17 years.

Mowbray himself cannot boast any success against the Blues either, having not won an away league match against Birmingham in his managerial career.

Birmingham City Championship form: WLLLDL

Blackburn Rovers Championship form: LLWLDL


Team News

Having struggled for form at home this season, Karanka could look to revert to the 4-2-3-1 formation that saw his side gain wins earlier in December.

As for injuries and suspensions, Karanka has no issues and should have a full squad to choose from for Rovers' visit.

For Mowbray, he will still be without veteran winger Elliott Bennett, defender Scott Wharton, midfielder Joe Rankin-Costello and Northern Ireland international Corry Evans.

Due to these injuries, Mowbray will have little choice but to field the same lineup that started last time out.

Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Etheridge; Colin, Roberts, Dean, Friend; Clayton, Sunjic; Sanchez, Toral, Bela; Hogan

Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:
Kaminski; Nyambe, Lenihan, Ayala; Douglas; Downing, Johnson, Rothwell; Elliott, Armstrong, Brereton


We say: Birmingham City 1-2 Blackburn Rovers

Poor recent form from both sides means that we are likely to see two sides bereft of any confidence. Still, given City's poor defensive numbers, we see this as something Rovers could exploit seeing as they have Adam Armstrong, the league's second top goalscorer in their ranks. With all of this in mind, we see Rovers sneaking an away win.


Top betting tip

Our expert tipster partners at Sporita.com are predicting over 1.5 goals in this match. Click here to find out what else they are predicting for this game and for more of their tried-and-tested football tips.Over 1.5:data



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Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Wycombe WanderersWycombe20135243222144
2Birmingham CityBirmingham18133234161842
3Wrexham21126331141742
4Huddersfield TownHuddersfield20123534181639
5Stockport CountyStockport21106534221236
6Lincoln CityLincoln218762825331
7Reading209473030031
8Bolton WanderersBolton199462829-131
9Barnsley218672930-130
10Mansfield TownMansfield198472322128
11Charlton AthleticCharlton207672319427
12Blackpool207672931-227
13Exeter CityExeter208391922-327
14Stevenage197571517-226
15Leyton Orient207492320325
16Peterborough UnitedPeterborough2073103837124
17Wigan AthleticWigan206681918124
18Rotherham UnitedRotherham196581921-223
19Bristol Rovers2064101829-1122
20Northampton TownNorthampton2156102134-1321
21Crawley TownCrawley1954102032-1219
22Cambridge UnitedCambridge2045112035-1517
23Burton Albion2026121732-1512
24Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury2033142141-2012
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