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

Bristol City welcome Birmingham City to Ashton Gate on Saturday afternoon having returned to the top six in the Championship standings.

However, the visitors head into this contest on the back of another game without success, their latest defeat to Barnsley leaving the club in 18th position.

Match preview

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Despite the change in manager earlier in the year, Bristol City have remained as one of the most inconsistent teams in English football.

Four victories in a row at the start of the season were followed by a five-match winless streak, undoing the results which had earned the club a spot in the top two.

However, the Robins have now prevailed in four of their last six contests, their most recent triumph coming at Queens Park Rangers on Tuesday night.

Dean Holden's team now sit in fifth spot, just one point adrift of the leaders, and the opportunity is there to progress higher up the standings in the next three fixtures.

Nevertheless, Bristol City succumbed to an out-of-form Birmingham side in this game last season, and it is something that their next opponents will want to replicate at the weekend.

Blues have recorded just two victories in 14 matches, the last of which came on October 31, while three points have been collected in six matches.

The appointment of Aitor Karanka looked a shrewd piece of business when the West Midlands outfit began the season with a 1-0 win over Brentford, but that success has proven to be a rare highlight during the Spaniard's short reign.

Birmingham are still six points above the relegation zone, and Karanka will likely stay in the dugout as long as he is able to maintain that gap above the bottom three.

That said, he has minimal backing from the club's supporters, something which could potentially tempt the club's owners into a change if things do not improve in the coming weeks.

Bristol City Championship form: WWWDLW

Birmingham City Championship form: LLDDDL

Team News

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Despite the recent setback against Barnsley, Karanka could decide to stick with the same 3-4-1-2 system.

However, George Friend, Jeremie Bela and Lukas Jutkiewicz are all pushing for a recall to the team after only being named as substitutes on Tuesday.

Having had an extra day of recovery, Holden may opt against making many alterations to his Bristol City XI.

Tommy Rowe made a positive impression when replacing Jay Dasilva against QPR, while Tyreeq Bakinson is a potential alternative for veteran midfielder Chris Brunt.

Bristol City possible starting lineup: Bentley; Mariappa, Vyner, Kalas, Rowe; Nagy, Brunt, O'Dowda; Semenyo, Martin, Wells

Birmingham City possible starting lineup: Etheridge; Roberts, Dean, Clarke-Salter; Colin, Sanchez, San Jose, Pedersen; McGree; Jutkiewicz, Hogan

We say: Bristol City 2-0 Birmingham City

While Blues stunned their hosts in this fixture last season, we do not expect lightning to strike twice. Providing that complacency does not become an issue, Bristol City should be able to come through this match with minimal fuss.

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