MX23RW : Tuesday, May 7 16:24:16| >> :120:22278:22278:
[monks data]
Birmingham logo
Championship
Nov 3, 2015 at 7.45pm UK
 
Blackburn logo

0-0

FT

Preview: Birmingham City vs. Blackburn Rovers

Sports Mole previews Tuesday night's Championship match between Birmingham City and Blackburn Rovers.

Birmingham City will try to return to winning ways when they take on Blackburn Rovers at St Andrew's on Tuesday night.

Gary Rowett's side have suffered back-to-back defeats, but they still remain Championship playoff contenders, while Blackburn have the chance of earning two away wins on the bounce.


Birmingham City

Gary Rowett of Birmingham City looks on during the pre season friendly match between Nuneaton Town and Birmingham City at the James Parnell Stadium on July 14, 2015© Getty Images

From a side that finished 15 points behind the playoff places last season, the Blues have impressed by moving into the top six of the Championship table.

Rowett's men have managed to gain seven wins and three draws while suffering four defeats this season overall, leaving them in a healthy position at the start of November.

Birmingham are just six points behind leaders Brighton, but they have struggled in their last two games, which have both ended in defeats.

The Blues had home advantage against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the weekend as they attempted to bounce back from a 2-0 defeat to Hull City at the KC Stadium the previous week.

However, it was not to be as Dave Edwards and Sheyi Ojo struck away goals to give Wolves a 2-0 triumph at St Andrew's.

Birmingham have suffered just four defeats all season in the Championship, three of which have been on home soil, and the worry for Rowett's side is that they have conceded in every single home match played in the Championship.

Prior to Birmingham's double blip, the team won four games on the bounce.

Recent form: WWWWLL


Blackburn Rovers

Manager of Blackburn Rovers Gary Bowyer looks on during the Sky Bet Championship match between Blackburn Rovers and Derby County at Ewood Park on September 17, 2014© Getty Images

Gary Bowyer's side have had trouble getting wins on the board this season having recorded just three out of 14 Championship games.

Blackburn could not get over the line at the start of the campaign as they played out four draws and suffered three defeats before claiming their first triumph in a 3-0 result over Charlton Athletic at Ewood Park.

Since then though, they have been unable to gain any momentum, but after two more defeats and another draw, things looked up when they sealed a 2-0 victory over Leeds United at Elland Road last week.

Goals from Craig Conway and Jordan Rhodes were enough to give Blackburn all three points, but they will need to continue that run if they want to improve on their spot in 15th position in the league table.

Blackburn have managed just five clean sheets this season, conceding 14 goals and also scoring 14 at the other end, but just four of them have come in their last five fixtures.

Recent form: DWLDLW


Team News

Birmingham City midfielder David Davis celebrates scoring against Charlton Athletic in a Championship match at The Valley on October 4, 2014© Getty Images

Rowett has one doubt in his squad ahead of Tuesday's fixture, and that is over the fitness of Maikel Kieftenbeld, who limped off the field against Wolves at the weekend.

The midfielder was withdrawn from the pitch just before the hour mark at St Andrew's and is battling to be fit for the midweek meeting.

David Davis also suffered an injury during the game last weekend, but is expected to be available when Rowett selects his team on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Blackburn defender Grant Hanley required stitches to his head following a clash during the game against Leeds, which puts his starting ability in doubt.

Rhodes is likely to lead the line, with Tom Lawrence providing support following his impressive performance at Elland Road.

Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Kuszczak; Caddis, Morrison, Robinson, Grounds; Gleeson, Cotterill, Davis, Maghoma, Gray; Donaldson

Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:
Steele; Marshall, Duffy, Kilgallon, Olsson, Taylor, Evans, Akpan, Conway, Lawrence; Rhodes


Head To Head

Clean sheets are few and far between for Birmingham when these two sides enter the pitch against one another - the Blues have conceded in all of the last 23 games against Blackburn.

However, the visitors to St Andrew's have only been able to claim one victory in their last eight league trips to the stadium.

Rhodes is Blackburn's top scorer this season with eight goals so far, and if history is anything to go by, the striker could extend his tally on Tuesday as he has scored four times in his last five games against Birmingham.

In this fixture last April, the two sides played out a 2-2 draw.


Sports Mole Logo

We say: Birmingham City 1-1 Blackburn Rovers

Birmingham are arguably exceeding expectations this season given that they are in the playoff places, but they have shown under Rowett that they have goals in them. The problem for the Blues, though, is that they have only managed to keep four clean sheets in 14 games.

Blackburn need a run of wins, and while they have struggled for consistency, they have Rhodes at their disposal, who has had his shooting boots on in his last few appearances against Birmingham. Both sides could get on the scoresheet, but they may struggle to find a winner.



ID:255517: cacheID:255517:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:10042:No Data Analysis info

Previews by email

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


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Manager of Blackburn Rovers Gary Bowyer looks on during the Sky Bet Championship match between Blackburn Rovers and Derby County at Ewood Park on September 17, 2014
Read Next:
Bowyer unhappy with "bad" Luke Murphy challenge
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CLeicester CityLeicester463141189414897
3Leeds UnitedLeeds462791081433890
4Southampton462691187632487
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom4621121370472375
6Norwich CityNorwich4621101579641573
7Hull City461913146860870
8Middlesbrough46209177162969
9Coventry CityCoventry4617131670591164
10Preston North EndPreston46189195667-1163
11Bristol City461711185351262
12Cardiff CityCardiff46195225370-1762
13Millwall461611194555-1059
14Swansea CitySwansea461512195965-657
15Watford461317166161056
16Sunderland46168225254-256
17Stoke CityStoke461511204960-1156
18Queens Park RangersQPR461511204758-1156
19Blackburn RoversBlackburn461411216074-1453
20Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds46158234468-2453
21Plymouth ArgylePlymouth461312215970-1151
RBirmingham CityBirmingham461311225065-1550
RHuddersfield TownHuddersfield46918194877-2945
RRotherham UnitedRotherham46512293789-5227


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!