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Birmingham logo
Championship
Feb 18, 2015 at 7.45pm UK
 
Middlesbrough logo

1-1

Caddis (45')
FT(HT: 1-0)
Bamford (74')

Preview: Birmingham City vs. Middlesbrough

Sports Mole runs the rule over Wednesday night's game as Middlesbrough look to return to the Championship's summit by beating Birmingham City.

Middlesbrough will have their eye on top spot in the Championship when they travel to face a stuttering Birmingham City side on Wednesday night.

Aitor Karanka and his side will know exactly what is required for them to reclaim first place as the match at St Andrew's is the only one on Wednesday and the last of matchday 31.

After Bournemouth dropped points at home to Huddersfield Town, Derby County can leapfrog both Boro and Bournemouth if they win at Rotherham United on Tuesday.

If Derby do win, Boro will have to match them to go top, but if the Rams drop points then a Boro draw will be enough for them to return to the summit.

Karanka's men are on an eight-game unbeaten run in the league and have won five in a row, but suffered defeat in their last game at Arsenal.

After they stunned Premier League champions Manchester City in the FA Cup fourth round, plenty was expected at the Emirates, but Boro lost 2-0 and rarely threatened to knock out the holders.

Their focus will now be fully on the league and returning to the top flight, with Karanka likely to recall Dimitrios Konstantopoulos in goal and make changes elsewhere to freshen up his XI.

Birmingham, meanwhile, have gone stale by failing to win any of their last five league games and scoring just twice in the run.

The Blues had drawn four in a row but then suffered defeat at home to relegation-threatened Millwall a week ago to drop back into the bottom half, eight points clear of the bottom three.

Gary Rowett has since brought Rob Kiernan to the club on loan from Wigan Athletic and the defender could make his debut in two days' time.

Michael Morrison is closing in on a return, but still won't be fit for Boro's visit, while Gavin Gunning and Matt Green have stepped up their recovery from serious ligament injuries.

Birmingham's recent home record against Boro is good as they have lost just once in 14 games, but Boro do have the second-best away record in the Championship this season.

Boro won the reverse 2-0 back on the opening weekend of the season.

Birmingham:

Form in Championship: WDDDDL
Form in all competitions: DLDDDL

Possible starting lineup: Randolph; Caddis, Kiernan, Robinson, Grounds; Davis, Gleeson; Cotterill, Gray, Dyer; Donaldson

Boro:

Form in Championship: DWWWWW
Form in all competitions: WWWWWL

Possible starting lineup: Konstantopoulos; Fredericks, Woodgate, Gibson, Friend; Forshaw, Leadbitter; Tomlin, Bamford, Reach; Vossen

Sports Mole says: 1-1


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