Birmingham City's sub-par run of form looks unlikely to improve in their next fixture as they host second-placed West Bromwich Albion on Saturday.
However, in their last outing, the Baggies were held away from home against Wigan Athletic, who are second-bottom and had not won in eight games, allowing Leeds United to remain top of the Championship table.
Match preview
© Reuters
Birmingham have just one win in their last seven Championship games since the start of November and face an in-form West Brom outfit that look set to claim an automatic promotion place.
It is not a kind fixture for the Blues, who fell to a 2-0 home defeat against Queens Park Rangers in their last outing, handing their opponents a second clean sheet of the season.
The early-season form under Pep Clotet was patchy, with consecutive league wins recorded just twice so far in this campaign, and they have tailed off as the calendar year approaches its end.
Part of that is down to the team's struggles at the back. Birmingham have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last eight games, and have just four from 21 Championship fixtures this term.
That will make for pleasant reading for West Brom, who are comfortably the division's top scorers, netting two goals a game on average and are the only side in the league to have broken the 40-goal barrier so far.
The Baggies will be keen to get back to winning ways after their shock draw away at Wigan that ended a six-game winning streak.
Slaven Bilic's side are second only on goal-difference, however, and are on an 11-game unbeaten run since losing 1-0 away at Leeds at the start of October.
That loss remains their only league defeat of the campaign, and the Baggies will feel confident of extending that record against a side in such poor form.
Birmingham City Championship form: LDDDWL
West Bromwich Albion Championship form: WWWWWD
Team News
© Reuters
Birmingham head coach Clotet is without a number of players ahead of the clash with West Brom.
Dan Crowley, Jake Clarke-Salter, Marc Roberts and Maikel Kieftenbeld are all expected to be sidelined.
However, Fran Villalba is available once again after recovering from a hamstring issue, while Gary Gardner is slowly returning to the fray.
Baggies boss Bilic, on the other hand, is set only to be without left-back Kieran Gibbs, with the rest of the squad fully fit.
Kyle Bartley had been a doubt for the game against Wigan but was able to feature and is back in contention.
Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Trueman; Colin, Dean, Harding, Pedersen; Sunjic, McEachran; Maghoma, Bellingham, Villalba; Jutkiewicz
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Johnstone; Furlong, Bartley, Ajayi, Townsend; Livermore, Sawyers; Phillips, Pereira, Diangana; Austin
We say: Birmingham City 0-2 West Bromwich Albion
Birmingham are struggling at the moment and West Brom - despite their draw last time out - are one of the best sides in the league and their clinical attack should prove too much for Clotet's side to handle.
body check tags ::
