In a Championship run-in with tightly-packed battles at both ends of the table, very few matches have little to play for, yet results since the season restart have conspired to leave both Fulham and Birmingham City with a good idea of where they will stand in a few weeks’ time.

Fulham had three months to mull a raid on the top two, Leeds United and West Bromwich Albion, but defeats to Brentford and Leeds saw the former overtake them as chief challengers and the latter pull out of sight.

It was third time lucky as Cyrus Christie’s stunning effort earned them a 2-1 midweek win at Queens Park Rangers, but the Cottagers are seven points behind the automatic places and the same number inside the play-offs, with six games left to play. Final positions and form look like being the only things to play for in this final run with the end-of-season shoot-out almost inevitable.

Birmingham have continued where they left off in terms of results. They didn’t win any of their five games before the season’s suspension and that run has been extended to eight, with a lot of draws pushing them down rather than up the table.

The past two at home have seen them draw 3-3 with Hull City and then lose 3-0 to Huddersfield Town, both sides battling for their lives at the bottom, and there is a sense that Pep Clotet’s team are playing like there’s little to compete for. That should still be the case with six points and five places separating them from the relegation zone, but a little more comfort might be welcomed.

Team news

Championship joint-top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic will serve the second part of his three-match ban against Birmingham, while fellow striker Aboubakar Kamara is a doubt. Neeskens Kebano is available again after serving a one-game ban for his red card at Leeds.

Birmingham have made few changes in their opening three games since the restart but are poised to switch things up this time, particularly with Marc Roberts and Ivan Sunjic back in contention.

Nico Gordon and Geralso Bajrami have both recovered from knocks for the Blues, but Josh McEachran (knee) remains out.

Predicted line-ups

Fulham: Rodak; Christie, Hector, Ream, Odoi; Cairney, Reed, Arter; Kebano, Decordova-Reid, Knockaert.

Birmingham: Camp; Colin, Roberts, Clarke-Salter, Pedersen; Bellingham, Crowley, Sunjic, Gardner, Bela; Hogan.

What the managers have said

Scott Parker wants to see his Fulham side build on their win over QPR, saying: “It’s a massive opportunity for us. It’s another game that comes thick and fast after a positive result on Tuesday.

“Even before these circumstances this league was very unpredictable at times, and anyone could beat anyone, and that’s the case even more so now when you look at it.

“There’s no doubt that Birmingham bring their threats. They have certain qualities, so we’ll be fully aware of that.”

Birmingham have a decent record against the promotion-chasing teams this season and their head coach Pep Clotet said: “I'm always confident and always positive in expecting performances from our team. But we need to go there and defend and get forward well and we have our weapons. Away from home we've been in good form.

“In the end it's up to how you start the game and how you compete in the game for 90 minutes. We need to hope that tomorrow we are better than them and we can get the three points.

“We'll look to compete at Fulham as we did at West Brom (a 0-0 draw). Fulham will likely have a lot of possession, so we need to be very organised and aware of their threats and try to maximise their weaknesses.”

Head-to-head

Fulham edged a tight clash at St Andrews earlier in the season, with goalkeeper Lee Camp’s error allowing Mitrovic to score the only goal in November.

That was only a second Cottagers win in the past eight matches between the clubs, with the other coming in the previous West London meeting in 2017, which also finished 1-0.

Where to watch

The match can be watched live on both clubs’ respective streaming services, FFCtv and BluesTV.