Managerless Birmingham City travel to the MKM Stadium for their FA Cup third round with Hull City.
It's an all Championship affair on Humberside - and the Blues will face the Tigers without a manager. Wayne Rooney was relieved of his duties after the New Year's Day defeat to Leeds United. Steve Spooner has been appointed interim boss and Tony Mowbray is the leading favourite for the St Andrew's gig, but despite initial talks going well, he is not expected to take charge until after this weekend.
The Africa Cup of Nations and the Asia Cup takes place this month and it will affect the hosts, but not Blues. Two players have been called up to represent their countries in Africa over the next month, whereas no players from Birmingham City will be heading to the Ivory Coast.
An all Championship affair probably allows for both managers to consider rotation for this tie. The league will be the priority for both, with Hull hoping to battle for promotion, and Birmingham the same if their next manager can inject some much needed inspiration in to the squad.
The two sides have already met once this season and that resulted in a 2-0 win for Liam Rosenior's men. Liam Delap opened the scoring in the 12th minute and then in the last quarter of the game Jaden Philogene ensured the victory. Neither player however will play against Birmingham City this time around after being ruled out with injuries.
Here's the latest injury and team news ahead of the FA Cup third round tie between Hull City and Birmingham City.
1. Ethan Laird (Birmingham) - out
Laird injured his hip during the 0-0 draw with Rotherham and further investigation has revealed a tear. The right-back is likely to miss all of December and most of January.
2. Alfie Chang (Birmingham) - out
Chang suffered an ACL knee injury in training back in August and he’s expected to miss the majority – if not all – of the season following surgery.
3. George Hall - out
Didn't play a single game under Wayne Rooney. Just as he was getting back to fitness In the under-21s, Hall felt his other hamstring go. He’s set for an extended period out. Photo: Getty Images
4. Marc Roberts - out
Suffered an injury towards the end of the year and is now expected to spend the next few weeks on the sidelines. Photo: Getty Images