Stoke City vs Birmingham Prediction

How each side arrives

Birmingham's championship record this season reads five wins, five draws and just the one defeat, and their away form has actually been solid with wins at West Brom, Derby and Wrexham mixed in among the draws at home.

Stoke City: 20 completed matches; Birmingham: 20 completed matches.

Stoke City

20 matches

Win

40% 8 / 20

Draw

25% 5 / 20

Loss

35% 7 / 20

Scored

25

Conceded

25

Difference

0

Birmingham

20 matches

Win

50% 10 / 20

Draw

35% 7 / 20

Loss

15% 3 / 20

Scored

34

Conceded

23

Difference

+11

Stoke's league form is choppier. They've won six of eleven but lost four, including home defeats to Middlesbrough, Southampton and Swansea, while picking up wins away at Derby, Bolton and Watford. It's a team that looks capable but inconsistent depending on the day.

Stoke's home form has been shakier than their overall record suggests, which is worth bearing in mind with Birmingham travelling well.

Comparative Team Statistics: Stoke City vs Birmingham

A history of tight games

These two have met regularly down the years and it's rarely been one-sided. The most recent meeting in January finished 1-1, and before that Stoke won 1-0 at home last season. Further back there's a mix of narrow wins and draws on both sides.

None of that history tells us much about where either side stands right now, but it does suggest this fixture doesn't tend to produce landslide results.

Not much between them

Birmingham sit fourth with 20 points from eleven games, Stoke are sixth with 19 from the same number of matches. That's about as close as it gets in the table, with Birmingham's tighter defence being the main point of separation so far.

A one-point gap in the table lines up with how unpredictable the head-to-head record has been.

Players to watch

Stoke's Galbraith has been their most productive forward with three goals in eight appearances, while Birmingham's Millar has chipped in three assists in just four games, suggesting he's been involved heavily when fit.

Stoke City:

Best scorers:

E. Galbraith - 3

Best assist providers:

E. Bocat - 2

Penalty cards:

S. Ingelsson x 1 x 1

E. Galbraith x 4

Birmingham:

Best assist providers:

L. Millar - 3

Penalty cards:

B. Osayi-Samuel x 3

These are useful pointers rather than confirmed line-ups, since neither list tells us who's actually available for this one.