Birmingham City’s most likely starting XI for their game against Portsmouth at the weekend

After a poor run of just one victory in their last six matches, Birmingham City desperately need a positive result against strugglers Portsmouth to prove that they have the mettle to sustain a genuine promotion push under manager Chris Davies.

Birmingham were beaten 1-0 by promotion hopefuls Bristol City in their last match, and despite dominating possession were unable to really create anything in the final third - failing to register a single shot on target at Ashton Gate.

The Blues spent big on new players over the summer with the expectation of pushing for automatic promotion, and if reports are to be believed time is running out for Davies to prove he’s the man for the task.

Ahead of a crunch match in Birmingham’s season, we take a look at how the West Midlands side might set up against Pompey at St Andrew’s.

Birmingham City predicted line-up vs Portsmouth: goalkeeper and defence

GK: James Beadle: England Under-21 prospect James Beadle has recently jumped ahead of Ryan Allsop in the pecking order. He kept a clean sheet last against Preston but was unable to prevent Sinclair Armstrong from scoring the winner for Bristol City last time out.

RB: Bright Osayi-Samuel: Summer signing Bright Osayi-Samuel returns to start after serving a one-match suspension against Bristol City. He’ll hope to play a big role in nullifying some of the attacking threats in John Mousinho’s side.

CB: Phil Neumann: Summer signing Phil Neumann scored the winner against Preston and has started the last few matches alongside Christoph Klarer. He’ll hope to continue that partnership.

CB: Christoph Klarer: Birmingham’s best performing central defender of the Chris Davies era. It’s hard to see them not starting with Christoph Klarer once again.

LB: Alex Cochrane: Scottish defender Alex Cochrane retains his place in the starting line-up. The former Hearts man has rarely been dropped by Chris Davies since signing.

Birmingham City predicted line-up vs Portsmouth: midfield and attack

CM: Tomoki Iwata: Blues look a better team when Tomoki Iwata is playing in central midfield. The Japan international should be able to influence the game much better in the middle of the park as he takes the place of Marc Leonard.

CM: Paik Seung-ho: South Korean midfielder Paik Seung-ho retains a starting spot in the centre of the pitch.

LM: Demari Gray: The Jamaica international is expected to return to the starting line-up ahead of Keshi Anderson after bouncing back from a slight injury. He’s not yet hit the ground running for Blues and fans will be demanding better displays.

RM: Patrick Roberts: Patrick Roberts, who won promotion with Sunderland last term, starts on the right midfield as he looks to inspire Blues to a positive result.

CAM: Jay Stansfield: Birmingham’s top scorer Jay Stansfield has arguably been the club’s best player this season. He could feature in a slightly deeper role as Chris Davies looks to switch things up in the final third.

ST: Marvin Ducksch: Two-time Germany international Marvin Ducksch has only started once this season since arriving and has had to settle for substitute outings since returning from a calf injury. He’s not yet had time to prove himself but boasts a pretty strong CV based on his time with Germany. He’ll feel it’s time for him to show what he’s about.