Team News
Martin Jiranek has had an operation on his injured toe so is unlikely to feature. Curtis Davies is likely to fill in again. Lee Bowyer and Nikola Zigic look set to return.
Bolton have a doubt over Mark Davies so Tamir Cohen could come in. Stuart Holden is out for the season.
Last Meeting
Our last meeting was only a few weeks ago in the FA Cup where a patched up Blues team lost to a late goal by Chung Yong Lee. The last league game between the two at St Andrews finished 2-1 with Bolton scoring a late winner through Chung Yong Lee. Let’s hope he doesn’t play tomorrow.
Recent Form
Blues have only one point to show from their last four league outings and average less than a goal a game at home. Bolton have won three of the last six but away from home they have not won since November. They average less than a goal a game away from home so don’t expect a goal fest.
Outlook
So here we go. The first of four must win home games in the tightest relegation fight in years. I know we probably don’t need to win all four but any points dropped at home will be difficult to get back from trips to Chelsea, Liverpool, Newcastle and Tottenham. The next three games are particularly important and I think we will know by Easter which league we will be playing in next season.
First up is Bolton who knocked us out of the cup just three weeks ago. That game however did give me confidence for tomorrow as they only narrowly beat our rag tag bunch of kids and journeymen. With a strong side out tomorrow we should do a lot better. Of course we may still have to play Curtis Davies…. Hopefully Bolton will already be thinking of the trip to Wembley for the semi. I wouldn’t blame them as only Stoke City stand between them and their first FA Cup final for a very long time.
The international break has come at a good time for Blues as it has allowed some players to rest and others to recover from injury. It has also given them a lot of time to reflect on the performance at Wigan which was well below the required standard. Hopefully they will all be raring to go tomorrow. I expect Zigic to start at best from the bench so McLeish may decide to start with Jerome and Phillips who both scored in the cup game. The key though will be at the back and particularly how the referee views Kevin Davies’ physical approach. Roger Johnson and whoever his partner is will have their hands full with him and they will also have to watch out for Daniel Sturridge who was cup tied in the last game. Bolton have a good defence as well so it may come down to who defends best at set pieces.
I really hope that Blues start with an attacking mindset and secure a comfortable three points but I expect it’s going to be another tight affair.
My prediction Birmingham 1 Bolton 0.
C’mon you blue boys!
We can only dream of Bolton not turning up and Blues romping to a comfortable 2 or 3 goal win but I fear a disappointing draw, I won’t allow myself to even think about losing.