Football – England – Championship
Saturday 20th December 2014 – Kickoff: 1500hrs
Huddersfield Town will be glad to return to their John Smith’s Stadium for today’s match following their 0-5 mauling at the hands of Norwich City at Carrow Road last weekend.
But despite holding home advantage here, there are no guarantees of The Terriers taking all three points against the visitors Birmingham City who have re-discovered their winning touch under new manager Gary Rowett.
Huddersfield have won just once in their last six league matches which was a 2-1 win over fifth placed Brentford while their overall home record stands at a reasonable 4-4-2 14/12. They’ve put together a seven-match unbeaten run on home turf but bear in mind they’ve drawn four of their last nine also.
Visitors Birmingham City registered another vital three points last Saturday in their quest to pull away from the bottom reaches of the Championship with a resounding 6-1 home win over struggling Reading.
Rowett’s side have lost just once since he took over the reigns at St Andrews which, ironically, was a 0-1 loss away at Blackpool who are now managed by former Blues boss Lee Clark, but Birmingham bounced back in style by scoring six on Saturday.
The Blues’ away record still requirers some attention though as it stands at 2-4-4 8/13 and they need to be more consistent on the road following recent defeats at Blackburn Rovers and Blackpool, a win at Rotherham United and draws at Charlton Athletic and Wolves.
Both Huddersfield and Birmingham have been involved in draws recently and I daresay both would be happy to settle for a point following Huddersfield’s loss last week, and Birmingham keen to halt further losses on their travels. Could be a low-scoring draw, perhaps 0-0 or 1-1.
Pick: Draw @ 3.40 Paddy Power
