Birmingham City are coming into this game vs Leeds United on the back of a six-match unbeaten run in all competitions, and they will certainly fancy their chances at home. It will be interesting to see if they can pull off an upset.
On paper, Leeds United are the better team, but the away side cannot afford to underestimate the opposition. The Whites have failed to win three of their last six matches against Birmingham City.
Meanwhile, the visitors are unbeaten in five of their last six matches across all competitions. Daniel Farke’s men will be full of confidence and momentum right now. They will certainly fancy their chances away at Birmingham City. The Hard Tackle looks closer at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.
Paik Seung-ho suffered a shoulder injury recently, and he will miss out, along with Ethan Laird (hamstring), Alex Cochrane, (ankle) and Lee Buchanan (knee). Birmingham City will start in a 4-5-1 formation vs Leeds United, with Ryan Allsop in goal.
Tomoki Iwata and Kai Wagner will start in the full-back positions and look to contribute at both ends of the pitch. Christoph Klarer and Phil Neumann will form the central defensive partnership for the home side.
Tommy Doyle and Demarai Gray will be deployed on the flanks here. They will look to help out during transitions with their pace and flair. In the middle of the park, Jhon Solis will start alongside Carlos Vicente and Jay Stansfield. They will look to add control and creativity to the team. Finally, August Priske will lead the line for Birmingham City vs Leeds United on Sunday.
Probable Lineup (4-5-1): Allsop; Iwata, Klarer, Neumann, Wagner; Doyle, Solis, Vicente, Stansfield, Gray; Priske
Daniel Farke will be without Pascal Struijk due to a hip problem. Anton Stach is also suffering from a hip-related issue. Leeds United will shape up in a 3-5-2 formation vs Birmingham City, with Lucas Perri in goal.
In the back three, Sebastiaan Bornauw will start alongside Jaka Bijol and Joe Rodon. Meanwhile, Jayden Bogle and Gabriel Gudmundsson will start as the wing-backs. They will look to keep things tight at the back and hit the home side on the break.
As for the midfield unit, Ao Tanaka and Ilia Gruev will provide defensive cover and physicality in the middle of the park. Brenden Aaronson will add drive to the midfield alongside them. Lukas Nmecha will lead the line for Leeds United, with Noah Okafor lining up alongside him in the final third.
Probable Lineup (3-5-2): Perri; Bornauw, Bijol, Struijk; Bogle, Tanaka, Aaronson, Gruev, Gudmundsson; Nmecha, Okafor
The German attacker is our key player to watch. Nmecha is in impressive form for Leeds United right now, and he has two goals and two assists to his name in the last three outings. He will look to create opportunities for his teammates here and find the back of the net as well.
The Leeds United striker will certainly fancy his chances of getting on the score sheet here, and he could cause all sorts of problems for Birmingham City.
Both teams will be fighting for a victory here, and this is likely to be a close contest. Neither team will sit back and defend. Leeds United have been very attacking in recent weeks, and they will look to outscore the opposition.
19 goals have been scored in the last six matches involving Leeds United. This is likely to be another high-scoring game, and the visitors should be able to find a way past the opposition. The Hard Tackle predicts a 2-1 win for Daniel Farke and his charges.
