Birmingham City are in Emirates FA Cup third round action this Saturday as they travel to the East Riding of Yorkshire to face Hull City. Blues, although closing in on the appointment of Tony Mowbray, are without a permanent manager following the sacking of Wayne Rooney on Tuesday morning.
Steve Spooner, who has been in charge of first-team duties this week, will be the man representing Birmingham in the away dugout at MKM Stadium, even if Mowbray is announced before kick-off. Victory would not only progress Blues to the fourth round, but it would provide a huge confidence boost after five games without a win.
Hull are in decent form, though, and they are up to seventh in the Championship. The Tigers are very much in the fight for the play-offs and are shining under manager Liam Rosenior, who is an ex-colleague of Rooney. The last meeting between Birmingham and Hull ended in the Tigers' favour.
Spooner will probably rotate the Blues XI a little to allow recent injury returnees to build match sharpness, but it's unlikely there will be a complete overhaul as Hull deserve lots of respect. With that in mind, here's the lineup we reckon will take on Rosenior's side.
1. GK: John Ruddy
Ruddy isn’t in the best form but he’s unlikely to be dropped by Spooner.
2. RB: Cody Drameh
Drameh is available once again after being ineligible against Leeds.
3. CB: Dion Sanderson
The skipper will be hoping to give Bluenoses something to cheer about as they look to progress to the fourth round.
4. CB: Emanuel Aiwu
Aiwu looks far more comfortable in the centre than he does at right-back.