It’s nearly time for Birmingham City’s highly-anticipated Sky Bet League One opener against Reading, with the Royals travelling to St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park for a 5.30pm kick-off on Saturday.
Blues, victorious in four of their six friendly outings, enjoyed a terrific pre-season. Wins over Rangers and West Bromwich Albion were highlights as Chris Davies got off to an excellent start as the club’s new manager.
Now is when it truly matters, though, with the eyes of everyone associated with the English third tier firmly on Birmingham. As favourites for not only automatic promotion but also the title, the expectation is that Blues win their opening fixture.
Reading are in financial ruin and have been unable to be active in the transfer market, apart from bringing in an Icelandic goalkeeper on loan. The disparity in financial power between Blues and the Royals is stark but anything can happen in League One.
The majority of Birmingham’s starting lineup should be fairly straightforward to predict as Davies has restricted rotation in pre-season. There are still some dilemmas, though, with a host of midfielders and attackers fighting over limited spots.
With that in mind, here’s the XI we reckon Davies will name on Saturday.