Birmingham City head back out on the road on Tuesday evening as they face up against Championship play-off hopefuls Watford at Vicarage Road. Now under fresh management following the sacking of Slaven Bilic and the appointment of Chris Wilder, The Hornets could pose a threat to a relegation-threatened Blues side.
John Eustace and his men finally managed their first win in six games on Saturday as they beat Rotherham United by two goals to nil, boosting their hopes of survival. Although being dragged back into the mix is still a slight concern, it seems as if Birmingham could well be alright after all.
It was an impressive performance on the weekend, particularly defensively, with Rotherham limited to just one shot on target. Eustace will be hoping his team can keep Watford at bay in a similar fashion and - if Saturday is anything to go by - they could well do just that.
Wilder had only a few days to get to know his new players but Watford were narrowly beaten away from home by a struggling Queens Park Rangers. QPR had lost their four previous games and looked up for the taking, but The Hornets were well below par as they fell to defeat.
Regardless of the weekend’s results, however, it will no doubt be a tough game for Birmingham as they have themselves been in a rough run of form. With that in mind, here is the strong starting XI we think Eustace will go for – in a 3-4-1-2 formation.
1. Birmingham City predicted XI vs Watford
Here are the 11 players we think Eustace will start at Vicarage Road.
2. GK: John Ruddy
Kept a clean sheet and had a decent game on the whole at the weekend. Neil Etheridge is a good goalkeeper, but Ruddy is certainly the number one choice.
3. CB: Harlee Dean
Absolutely dominant in the air most times he plays and was just that against Rotherham, earning a place in the Championship team of the week.
4. CB: Kevin Long
Scored the second goal to help Blues to victory and - just like Dean - made the Championship team of the week for his efforts.