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Championship | Gameweek 18
Dec 12, 2020 at 3pm UK
St. Andrew's Stadium
WL

Birmingham
0 - 1
Watford


Kieftenbeld (15'), Pedersen (57')
Pedersen (84')
FT(HT: 0-0)
Deeney (85' pen.)
Capoue (90+1')

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

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

Birmingham City square off against Watford in the Championship on Saturday afternoon having recorded back-to-back victories over top-six sides.

The Hornets, who currently sit in third spot, ended a two-game winless streak in midweek as they comfortably got the better of Rotherham United.


Match preview

While Aitor Karanka's style of football does not necessarily lend itself to facing teams in the bottom half of the table, they are proving to be effective against opposition further up the standings.

Few people would have given Blues a chance of recording maximum points at Bristol City and Reading, but Karanka's side were good value for their wins at Ashton Gate and the Madejski Stadium.

The latter result came with Birmingham being at a player disadvantage for the final 20 minutes, leaving the Spaniard delighted with the application of his hard-working team.

Although they remain down in 15th position, the West Midlands outfit are now 10 points above the relegation zone, easing the pressure ahead of their next outing.

Blues fans are excited to see former Barcelona youngster Alen Halilovic feature in games such as this one, although the arrival of the Croatian appears to have lifted the performance levels of Jon Toral.

Like Karanka, Vladimir Ivic is having to work hard to win over supporters at Vicarage Road after prioritising the team's efforts in defence.

However, despite the criticism which has been directed at the Serbian, Watford now sit in third position in the table with the second-best backline in the division.

A couple of below-par performances is all it would take for Ivic to be further scrutinised, but the summer arrival will remain confident that he has found the right formula with his Hornets squad.

Troy Deeney ended his wait for a goal from open play against Rotherham, finally netting after a barren spell of 351 minutes since the start of the campaign.

Birmingham City Championship form: DDDLWW

Watford Championship form: DDWDLW


Team News

The extra day of recovery may convince Ivic to name the same Watford side from the win over Rotherham United.

However, the Hornets boss is not short of alternatives with James Garner, Will Hughes and Joao Pedro all hopeful of being brought into the team.

Birmingham will have to make do without Harlee Dean, who was sent off for two yellow cards against the Royals.

Mikel San Jose is expected to be brought in as his replacement, but that could prove to be the only change to the starting XI.

Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Etheridge; Colin, Roberts, San Jose, Pedersen; Kieftenbeld, Sunjic; Sanchez, Toral, Leko; Hogan

Watford possible starting lineup:
Foster; Ngakia, Troost-Ekong, Kabasele, Femenia; Sarr, Cleverley, Chalobah, Sema; Perica, Deeney


We say: Birmingham City 1-1 Watford

Neither side have been particularly impressive in the final third this season, leading us to think that defences could come out on top at St Andrew's. To a certain extent, a low-scoring draw would be deemed acceptable by both managers, and that is how this game could pan out at the weekend.


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 WanderersWycombe16122236181838
2Wrexham17104326111534
3Birmingham CityBirmingham15103228151333
4Stockport CountyStockport1786329171230
5Huddersfield TownHuddersfield1692525151029
6Barnsley177642622427
7Reading168352624227
8Bolton WanderersBolton168352526-127
9Lincoln CityLincoln177552321226
10Mansfield TownMansfield157352017324
11Exeter CityExeter167271415-123
12Charlton AthleticCharlton166461717022
13Peterborough UnitedPeterborough166373229321
14Bristol Rovers176381723-621
15Wigan AthleticWigan165561513220
16Blackpool175572430-620
17Stevenage165471116-519
18Northampton TownNorthampton174671923-418
19Rotherham UnitedRotherham164571419-517
20Crawley TownCrawley174491527-1216
21Leyton Orient164391420-615
22Cambridge UnitedCambridge163491425-1113
23Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury1632111629-1311
24Burton Albion1615101529-148
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