Sunderland travel to Birmingham City in the Championship. Last time out Sunderland lost to Huddersfield and Birmingham beat Blackburn The Black Cats dropped to 10th place with the 1-0 defeat at Huddersfield. Michael Beale made one change to the starting eleven with Jobe starting in place of Roberts. Patrick Roberts ended the game with what looked like a hamstring injury and could be sidelined for up to 4 weeks. Elliot Embleton has a sprained ankle. Callum Styles could be named on the bench. Alese, Cirkin, Dack, Huggins and Evans remain on the injured list. Birmingham City won at home in the Championship for the first time in almost three months as they ruined former Blues boss John Eustace's return with Blackburn Rovers. With Tony Mowbray sat in the stand serving a one-match ban, Blues needed just one goal to beat Eustace's Rovers. Mowbray will be looking for another 3 points against one of his former clubs. Alex Pritchard has a calf injury and is unlikely to play. Dion Sanderson returned to training this week but this game maybe too soon. Winger George Hall could return after injury. Mick Beale: "We got into some good areas in the first half without looking as big a threat as I would like, and had some incredible chances in the second half. "But we lost the game to a set-play, and that happened against Middlesbrough, Ipswich and now this, and it's on me, and I have to fix it. It's not good enough. "We had the big chance with Trai, but it was an incredible save, after losing Paddy [Roberts] and having to end the game with 10 men. "In both boxes we have come up short and conceded a set-play to the team that are number one for set-plays." Tony Mowbray: "There was a lot to be pleased about, but some frustration too after all the chances we missed. "It looked like it might be one of those nights when they would score, we'd lose 1-0 and everyone would be upset. But thankfully we got the goal. "We built up some pressure around their box but it was great that Andre's really sweet left foot put the ball in the back of the net. "I did say to my staff that I wondered whether making seven changes might be too much, but it felt right. We needed to show the opposition we'd be right in their face, get the challenges, make the runs and make the tackles." Match Appointments: Referee: STEPHEN MARTIN Assistant Referees: Mark Dwyer & Mark Russell Fourth Official: Martin Woods Team Lineups: Sunderland AFC: (4-3-3) Patterson, Hume, O’Nien, Ballard, Hjelde, Neil, Ekwah, Rigg, Clarke, Mundle, Rusyn. Subs: Bishop, Pembele, Seelt, Ba, Aouchiche, Burstow, Jobe, Styles, Hemir Injured: Huggins, Cirkin, Evans, Dack, Alese, Embleton, Roberts Birmingham (4-2-3-1) Ruddy, Drameh, Bielik, Roberts, Laird, Dozzell, Paik Seung-ho, Roberts, Miyoshi, James, Stansfield. Subs: Etheridge, Buchanan, Bacuna, Jutkiewicz, Anderson, Dembélé, Gardner, Long, Sunjic Injured: Pritchard, Chang, Sanderson, Hall Betting Odds: Sunderland 29/20 Birmingham 9/5 Draw 12/5 Prutton Predicts: 2-1 My two pence: A poor performance at Huddersfield, but we are still in touching distance of the play-offs, though we do need to improve our away form and pretty quick. Birmingham are almost as inconsistent as us, but they are gradually improving under Mowbray. A full house is expected at St Andrews and I’ve got my tickets. I’m going for a 2-1 away win. Live Stream: Available to overseas fans https://safc.com/news/team-news/live-video Press conference for this fixture is on Friday? Ha’way the Lads
Great thread as always mate. A car full of us heading down. Hoping to be in Tamworth for 11am. A few beers and onto Birmingham. Huge game but I’m not confident.
Don't really fancy this one but then I fancied us against Huddersfield so shows what I know. As a few have said let's go back to basics and have overlapping fullbacks with Rusyn staying in the middle. Lets forget about any shenanigans involving Hume stepping into midfield or Ekwah playing rush keeper for the time being. Solid tactics with everyone understanding their role, working hard and we should get the points. I just hope we're up for it and don't stroll about. Beale needs to get intensity injected into them.
You’d like to think these lads would put in a performance against Mowbray’s team as a sign of respect if nowt else. 1-1. Rusyn.
Mowbray knows us inside out. 1 win in 11 away from home. It certainly doesn’t point to an away win. Hoping for a surprise.
"This could be our season ending right here - I hope I'm wrong" OK - fess up which one of you is this lad
Aye let's hoy Styles into the starting lineup at CM despite him not yet playing a minute for us and barely being recovered from a major op. I'm all for new ideas but there's got to be an element of realism.
Where to go with this one, hope the lads pick themselves up after a poor show midweek, positive thinking for a narrow away win HTL.
Wish I could say I am optimistic but that midweek game really deflated me. I do think we can get something but it really relies on a number of things. Tactics need to be right because at times midweek we played with 2 and sometimes 3 holding midfielders, it was extremely negative and in my opinion really stopped any momentum from Saturday's victory. I don't understand why we have to play different formations and tactics away from home as if we play to our strengths then we will win more than we lose but for some reason they keep reverting back to this turgid defensive formation and hope it works. Either that or the players can not play the formations they are asking them to play. Needs sorting out sooner rather than later. Anyway with that off my chest I can not predict a defeat so will go for a 2-2 draw and hope I am wrong and we get a morale boosting win.
Any positive news any clean sheet both would be welcome. I was told last night Pat out for 6 to 8 weeks. That's not official mind.
Just have to try and turn this lifting away from round. Getting to be a season killer it is. Massive game. Need to pick up something to return back to north east.
Great thread as always @RTB thank you. Head says a draw, heart says we will win. Hoping we pick the pace up from midweek, let's be honest it couldn't have been much slower. Is it a confidence thing for these young lads? Is it tactics? I don't honestly know, but feels like we need a good result if only to lift the spirits of everyone
It's good that we have another match so quickly and that it's away, the people who went to Huddersfield deserve a performance and I think they'll get one. I don't buy into this 'Mowbray knows Sunderland' routine or that the Birmingham players will try harder because it's one of his endless ex-clubs. Everyone knows everyone these days. There's no reason to be scared of Birmingham, get into them and f**k them up!!!
Minor hamstring from what was said after the game. Mundle will be in the starting line up at Birmingham imo.
Cheers RTB love the match day thread and appreciate your hard work and valuable time you put into them, right midweek was as bad as it gets hopefully we see a fresh face in the middle of the park and lots more energy gona go for 3-1 to the lads and hearing uncle Tony saying I taught them how to do that, safe travels everyone who’s going COME ON
