SM
Inter Milan vs. Como: 13 hrs 21 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Collect News Data
SL
Championship | Gameweek 20
Nov 5, 2022 at 3pm UK
Bet365 Stadium
BL

Stoke
1 - 2
Birmingham

Baker (75' pen.)
Sterling (9'), Thompson (57'), Fox (89')
FT(HT: 0-1)
Hogan (13'), Dean (67')
Jutkiewicz (8'), Bielik (31'), Chong (75'), Sanderson (77')

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

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

Stoke City will be on the hunt for back-to-back victories when they host Birmingham City in the Championship on Saturday afternoon.

The Potters ended a three-match losing run with a narrow win at Wigan Athletic in the week, whereas Birmingham were held to a goalless draw by Millwall at St Andrew's in a cagey affair.


Match preview

A 62nd-minute Josh Tymon strike earned Stoke a maximum at the DW Stadium on Wednesday night, leaving Alex Neil's men 17th in the Championship after collecting a steady 22 points from their opening 18 outings.

That win at Wigan came at an important time, as it ended a run of three consecutive losses which had seen the Midlands club slide towards the relegation places in the second tier despite a host of exciting incomings during the summer transfer window.

Dwight Gayle is a signing that many Stoke fans expected to set the division alight when he joined in July, but the ex-West Bromwich Albion man has not scored in 17 league appearances so far, although it is only fair to point out the 33-year-old has provided a team-leading four assists which makes up slightly for a lack of goals.

Midfielder Lewis Baker ended a lifelong association with Chelsea when he moved to Stoke permanently in the summer and is top of the club's goalscoring charts with four goals despite playing in the middle of the park, indicative of the team's forward players struggling to provide regular goal contributions this year.

Neil's men have been a lot more effective on their travels than at the bet365 Stadium, with only eight of their 22 points so far coming in front of their home faithful, suggesting that Stoke are not to be feared by visiting sides as much anymore as they were famously in the Premier League during the last decade.

Birmingham did not manage a shot on target during their goalless draw with Millwall on Wednesday night, but nevertheless head coach John Eustace was happy his side's effort as they kept their seventh clean sheet of the season.

That shutout at St Andrew's means Blues have only conceded 15 goals in 18 Championship games so far this season, a defensive record better than any other side in the division and representative of brilliant performances from the likes of defenders Auston Trusty and Dion Sanderson during the opening to this campaign.

Since the arrivals of Krystian Bielik and Tahith Chong into the starting XI, Birmingham have only lost twice in 11 games and have been competitive in every single one of those matchups, to the delight of Eustace and the Blues supporters.

Sitting an equal distance from the playoffs and the relegation zone in 13th place, Blues will be keen on extending the gap from the drop zone between now and the World Cup break to further prove pre-season predictors wrong and show the second tier what this close-knit group of players can achieve.

With the ownership situation of the club still rumbling on slowly in the background, Eustace and his staff are doing a remarkable job of keeping the players focused on matters on the field where in past seasons external issues have consumed all concentration and attention.

Stoke City Championship form:

Birmingham City Championship form:


Team News

Stoke's Phil Jagielka may be set for a rest when Birmingham visit on Saturday afternoon after the 40-year-old played full 90 minutes in both of his side's fixtures over the past week.

Gavin Kilkenny and Harry Souttar remain sidelined with groin and cruciate ligament injuries respectively, with both unlikely to feature for Stoke until after the World Cup break.

Birmingham have no fresh injury concerns after the midweek stalemate with Millwall but will still be without the services of Gary Gardner (calf) and Przemyslaw Placheta (shin) until after the World Cup.

Marc Roberts resumed first-team training for the first time after a hamstring injury the defender picked up in the win at West Bromwich Albion in September, with the 32-year-old possibly able to play a part in Blues' final game before the break against Sunderland next Friday.

Nico Gordon and George Friend continue to get gametime for the Birmingham Under-21s side after lengthy spells out with their respective injuries.

Stoke City possible starting lineup:
Bursik; Wilmot, Jagielka, Fox; Clarke, Thompson, Baker, Tymon, Powell; Brown, Gayle

Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Ruddy; Sanderson, Dean, Trusty; Colin, Bielik, Hannibal, Longelo, Bacuna, Chong, Hogan


We say: Stoke City 1-1 Birmingham City

Stoke are enduring an indifferent start to their Championship campaign and will be looking to improve their home form in order to climb up the standings, starting with a positive result against Birmingham.

Birmingham have been a hard nut to crack for most opponents so far this season and will be confident in collecting at least a point on their travels this weekend.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.


Top 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


body check tags ::

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


amp_article__498752 : Collect and Make Data not in DataBase  : 
last updated article - 2024-06-05 13:09:36:
html db last update - 2024-06-05 13:09:36 :

ex - 7200 : read : write cache and make html
Read more!
Share this article now:


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!
Recommended Next on SM
Wednesday's Championship predictions including Norwich City vs. QPR
Man United's Marcus Rashford replacement likely to leave the club in January?
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
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.

history www

Pep Guardiola to dig into war chest and sign £80m rated attacker for Man City?

1

PG

Man United's Marcus Rashford replacement likely to leave the club in January?

2

MU

Preview: Yemen vs. Saudi Arabia - prediction, team news, lineups

3

PY

Preview: Bahrain vs. Iraq - prediction, team news, lineups

4

PB

Amorim Vs Arteta: Manchester United to battle Arsenal for star forward?

5

AV

Two Arsenal, two Liverpool: Sports Mole's Premier League Team of the Week

6

TA

Game of the season: Leaders Liverpool tear Tottenham apart in nine-goal spectacular

7

GO

Rashford's future 'takes a fresh twist' as 'new favourite' for Man United star 'emerges'

8

RF

'Everton draw better than Brentford win': Maresca delighted with Toffees stalemate

9

'D

A favour from an enemy: Liverpool receive huge title boost as Everton hold Chelsea

10

AF


. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .