Charlton Athletic vs Birmingham City
3pm Kick-Off
Referee – Paul Tierney (Lancashire)
INTRODUCTIONIf Carlsberg did Tuesday nights...!
Not only was Tuesday a terrific night for Bob Peeters and his squad, but also for their opponents on Saturday: Birmingham.
Lee Clark’s team defeated Addicks’ rivals Millwall to add further joy for the travelling Charlton fans, who themselves, witnessed a robbery at Carrow Road.
In all seriousness, the spirit, bravery, determination and excellence that was lead from their Colonel Jackson gave Charlton a moment to remember for a long time.
Now the attention must be towards Saturday’s game and the possibility of clutching another three points plus continuing to head up the table.
THE OPPOSITIONDespite winning at the Toolbox in midweek, Birmingham still haven’t enjoyed the best of seasons so far and are currently 20th in the table and three points away from the relegation zone.
To be fair to Lee Clark’s side, they do have one of the lowest budgets in the league and will rely mostly on their loan signings to help them throughout the course of the season.
In the last campaign, the Blues only just avoid relegation to League One through a last-minute equaliser from Paul Caddis in a 2-2 draw with Bolton which consequently sent Doncaster down instead.
In terms of Saturday’s fixture away at The Valley, Birmingham will be looking to the likes of Clayton Donaldson, Wes Thomas and David Cotterill, to get a good result at SE7.
ONE TO WATCH – Darren Randolph
My player to watch this week is former Addick:
Darren Randolph.
The Republic of Ireland international joined Birmingham in May 2013 following a three-year spell with Scottish side Motherwell.
As Charlton fans will be aware, Randolph is a very good goalkeeper and despite only featuring 16 times for the Addicks, he did have some memorable moments including a last-minute point-blank save from a Jermaine Beckford header in a 1-0 victory over Leeds.
He was ever-present for Birmingham last season and if Lee Clark’s side are to get a good result at The Valley, he’ll certainly need to be on top form.
LINE-UPAlthough the midweek victory over Norwich was fantastic, I wouldn’t be too surprised to see quite a few changes from Bob Peeters this weekend.
One definite absentee will be Tal Ben Haim who has been very impressive so far this season. He will miss the game on Saturday due to religious reasons.
With Ben Haim missing, it’s more than likely that Michael Morrison will step in for his first league game of the season. However, Joe Gomez will also be in contention following excellent displays at right-back.
Chris Solly is likely to return at right-back. While, Henderson, Bikey and Wiggins should start.
In midfield, Johan Gudmundsson is still a doubt, so Lawrie Wilson could keep his spot at right-midfield. Following his goal against Norwich, Jackson will continue alongside Yoni Buyens.
Elsewhere, Jordan Cousins and Frederic Bulot will be hoping to keep their spots in midfield following solid displays at Carrow Road.
It’s unknown whether George Tucudean will be fit enough to start. If so, he may start upfront alongside Igor Vetokele.
Karlan Ahearne-Grant will be hoping to be amongst the substitutes bench again after an impressive cameo on his professional debut in midweek.
PREDICTIONThe expectation of three points has risen following the win at Norwich and perhaps, rightly so.
However, I do think that this Charlton team will prove just a bit too strong for Birmingham, so I’ll go for:
Charlton Athletic 2-0 Birmingham City 
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