Our prediction for this Championship match:
Birmingham City will look to put an end to their four-game winless run in the Championship when they take on Middlesbrough in a postponed fixture. The Blues suffered a dip in form, with the team dropping to 21st place in the standings, only one point clear of bottom three. Captain Dion Sanderson serves the last of his three-game ban, while both Ethan Laird and Andre Dozzell should be recalled to the starting XI.
The Boro, on the other hand, aim to build on back-to-back wins over Norwich City and Queens Park Rangers and seeing that a victory over Birmingham will see them revive their playoffs hopes, we believe that there is a big value in betting on Michael Carrick’s men. As for the visitors, Josh Coburn remains in the recovery room alongside Hayden Hackney, Alex Bangura, Dael Fry, and Darragh Lenihan. In Coburn’s absence, Latte Lath should keep his place in the starting eleven.
Highlighted Player (Paddy McNair):
Following in the footsteps of his compatriot Jonny Evans, Paddy McNair joined the Manchester United academy in 2011 and he was surprisingly handed first team debut by Louis van Gaal at the start of the 2014/2015 season.
Despite his fragile age, the talented central defender has been putting in some very mature performances ever since, and everything suggests he could go on to become an important player at Old Trafford in years to come. After representing a number of youth sides, McNair made his first appearance for the Northern Ireland senior national team in a March 2015 friendly vs Scotland, before making another three outings as his side secured their place at the Euro 2016 finals.
Northern Ireland coach Michael O’Neill surprisingly played McNair in holding midfield in the March 2016 friendly vs Wales. After the youngster impressed in the middle of the park, O’Neill went on to suggest that the Manchester United starlet may be used in midfield rather than defence in years to come in the national team.
Highlighted Team (Birmingham City):
Birmingham City are a club located in the city of Birmingham, England. Birmingham City were founded in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, but the club’s named was changed to Small Heath in 1888. 17 years later they became Birmingham and in 1943 they finally changed their name to Birmingham City.
The Blues welcome their rivals at St. Andrew’s, the stadium that was opened in 1906. Birmingham City compete in the Championship and their fiercest rivals are WBA and Aston Villa. The Blues made it to the FA Cup final twice, but they have yet to win the prestigious trophy. In 1931 they were beaten by their local rivals WBA in the title game (1-2), whilst in 1956 they were outplayed by Manchester City in the title game.
The colour of Birmingham’s home kit is blue with white stripe. Trevor Francis, Gil Merrick, Bob Latchford, Jeff Hall, Alex Govan, Joe Bradford and Christophe Dugarry are notable footballers who played for the St. Andrew’s outfit in the past.