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birmingham city they will look to take another step towards championship safety when they entertain the playoff chase Blackburn ATVs in St Andrew’s on Saturday afternoon.

The Blues picked up two important wins before the international break to ease relegation fears, while Blackburn will continue to suffer after their FA Cup quarter-final exit.

match preview

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A strong performance away from home against Queens Park Rangers a fortnight ago handed Birmingham their second win in three matches, a brief upturn in form that has their second-tier status all but secured for next season.

Tahith Chong finished off a quick counter-attack from the Second City club at Loftus Road to secure all three points, with the former Manchester United man scoring the goal, along with an assist from Juninho Bacuña – showing that Blues has the quality in patches to avoid a scrap to survive.

John Eustace‘s Men are currently 17th in the Championship standings, nine points clear of 22nd-placed Huddersfield Town, with just eight games to play, meaning a win on Saturday would go a long way to completely eliminate any concerns about descent.

As an unclear ownership and takeover situation continues to swirl around St Andrew’s, the playing staff are close to achieving their main goal this campaign: preventing the club from slipping into the third tier of English football.

The blues have tended to fade at the end of seasons in recent years, and head coach Eustace will be desperate to avoid an uninspiring end to his first term in charge of the club.

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Blackburn were 10 minutes from a trip to Wembley just before the international break when they led in their FA Cup quarter-final clash at Bramall Lane against Sheffield United.

However, excitement would soon turn to despair for Rovers’ traveling supporters as late goals from the Blades duo Oli McBurnie and Thomas Doyle dramatically ousted the visitors from the competition in the last eight stage.

jon dahl tomasson He will no doubt use that heartbreaking defeat as motivation to end the Championship season on a high, with a trip to Wembley still within reach for the Lancashire club.

Rovers sit fifth in the second-tier table, four points ahead of seventh-placed Norwich City and eighth-placed Coventry City, with both teams playing one more game than Tomasson’s men.

Blackburn have already won at St Andrew’s this season, however it took 120 minutes and a trusted auston own goal to secure their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup at the expense of Birmingham in January.

Birmingham City Championship Form:

Blackburn Rovers Championship form:

Blackburn Rovers form (all competitions):

team news

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Birmingham duo Bacuna and Hannibal Mejbri he will return to training on Friday following his international commitments with Curaçao and Tunisia respectively, meaning his inclusion in Saturday’s starting XI is in doubt.

dion sandersonThe season appears to be over after the defender suffered a back injury. kevin long and marc roberts they are likely to be the central defensive partnership in this one for the hosts.

Troy Deeney continues to recover from a hamstring injury and is expected to return sometime this month, while Jobe Bellingham he remains sidelined due to an abdominal problem.

Blackburn have a couple of hamstring injuries within their ranks ahead of a weekend trip to the West Midlands, with bradley dack and Daniel Ayala out of service until the end of this month.

Young jack ok enjoyed his first sustained spell in the Rovers side during the early part of 2023, however the Welshman is currently sidelined with an ankle injury.

Possible Birmingham City starting line-up:
Ruddy; Colin, Roberts, Long, Trusty; Bielik, Bacuna, Chong, Hall, Khadra; jutkiewicz

Possible starting line-up for Blackburn Rovers:
pears; Rankin-Costello, Carter, Hyam, Pickering; Travis, Morton, Thomas, Szmodics, Brereton; gallagher

We Say: Birmingham City 1-2 Blackburn Rovers

Birmingham are far from the almost certain safety of the Championship, yet that is rarely the way the Blues do their business of survival early in the second tier.

Blackburn are down the stretch in their quest for a top-six result, and we believe they will bounce back from their FA Cup defeat with a cap at St Andrew’s on Saturday.

For data analysis of the most likely outcomes, scores and more for this match, click here.

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