Birmingham v Man Utd Preview

Posted Saturday, January 09, 2010 by BBC.com

Birmingham v Man Utd Preview Barclays Premier League
Venue: St Andrew's Date: Saturday, 9 January 2010 Kick-off: 1730 GMT
Coverage: BBC Sport website, BBC Radio 5 Live, local radio, Final Score, highlights on Match of the Day & live on ESPN

Birmingham, you would argue, are the form team of the league. They are on a long unbeaten run in the cup and in the league and they're a grown-up Premier League team these days, very good defensively.

Man Utd, on the other hand, are stuttering a touch at right now and are struggling to put away the lower teams, which they used to be so expert at when they had Cristiano Ronaldo.

I'm going to go 1-1 here and I think Birmingham would bite your hand off for that.

Verdict: 1-1

TEAM NEWS

Birmingham will be without Lee Carsley (ankle) and Stuart Parnaby (back), both of whom were injured on FA Cup duty.

Blues boss Alex McLeish could name an unchanged line-up for the ninth successive league match.

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is set to ring the changes after the FA Cup exit to Leeds.

Nemanja Vidic will not feature after tweaking a nerve in his leg during the warm-up on Sunday, although he should not be out for more than 10 days.

Birmingham

Suspended: None Doubtful: None

Injured: Carsley (ankle), Murphy & Tainio (both knee), O'Connor (hip), Parnaby (back), Vignal (unspecified)

Manchester United

Suspended: None Doubtful: None

Injured: Ferdinand (calf/back), Hargreaves (knee), O'Shea (thigh), Van der Sar (knee), Vidic (nerve in leg)

MATCH PREVIEW

Manchester United may have never lost a Premier League game to Birmingham, but boss Sir Alex Ferguson could be forgiven for casting envious glances at Alex McLeish in the home dug-out.

After resting a couple of players in the FA Cup tie against Nottingham Forest, McLeish looks set to field an unchanged side for the ninth league match in a row.

That continuity is clearly paying dividends, with Blues unbeaten in 11 top-flight matches, one short of a new club record. Optimism abounds amongst Bluenoses right now but the history books bring up one unfavourable omen. The last time Birmingham went 11 games unbeaten (in 1908) the streak was ended by Manchester United, and Blues ended the season bottom of the old First Division.

While Birmingham reap the benefits of a settled side, Ferguson looks certain to change his line-up for the 100th successive match after the poor display against Leeds. The Red Devils' injury crisis is beginning to ease but the United rearguard continues to look vulnerable without Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand.

Wayne Rooney may be on course for his most prolific campaign at Old Trafford, but his partnership with Dimitar Berbatov is yet to gel. The Bulgarian has scored six league goals but none of those have come against a side higher than 10th in the current table.

The Red Devils have not lost to Birmingham since 1978. That was the year that Sir Alex Ferguson took over at Aberdeen, advising McLeish (then a young defender at Pittodrie) to give up his accountancy studies and focus on a career in football instead. The pair remain close to this day - McLeish consulted his mentor before quitting Scotland to take charge of Birmingham in 2007.

MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head

• Manchester United are unbeaten against Birmingham in 22 games (21 league), winning 16 and drawing six since a 5-1 defeat at St Andrew's on 11 November 1978.

Birmingham

• If Blues avoid defeat they will have gone 12 games unbeaten, a new club record in the top flight.

• They have equalled the record set in 1907/08, a run which ended with a 1-0 loss to Manchester United on 29 February 1908. That run actually only included three wins, and was not enough to save Blues from relegation at the end of the season.

• Alex McLeish's men have won all eight league games in which they have scored first this season.

• Birmingham have kept nine clean sheets so far - Chelsea are the only top-flight side to register more shut-outs (10).

Man Utd

• The Red Devils have lost three of their last six league and cup games. Each of their seven defeats this season has been followed by a victory.

• If Ferguson names a different starting XI to the side that lost to Leeds, it will be the 100th consecutive game he has made changes to his line-up.

• The Red Devils have won six and lost four of their 10 league games away from Old Trafford. No club has taken more points on their travels this season.

LEADING GOALSCORERS

Birmingham

Bowyer: 6 goals (5 league);

Jerome, Larsson: 4 goals (4 league)

Man Utd

Rooney: 15 goals (14 league); Owen: 7 goals (2 league)

MATCH OFFICIALS

Referee: Mark Clattenburg

Assistant referees: John Flynn & Paul Simpson

Fourth official: Mike Jones

LAST LEAGUE MATCH LINE-UPS

Birmingham (W1-0 v Stoke, a): Hart; Carr, R Johnson, Dann, Ridgewell, Larsson (Fahey 77), Ferguson, Bowyer, McFadden, Jerome, Benitez. Subs not used: Maik Taylor, Phillips, McSheffrey, D Johnson, Carsley, Vignal.

Man Utd (W5-0 v Wigan, h): Kuszczak; Rafael, Brown, Vidic (Anderson 68), Evra (Fabio 68), Valencia, Carrick, Fletcher, Park, Berbatov (Welbeck 68), Rooney. Subs not used: Amos, Neville, Owen, Obertan.

MOST RECENT MEETING

Man Utd 1-0 Birmingham (16 August 2009)

Man Utd scorer: Rooney 34.