This fixture will be Aitor Karanka’s first EFL Championship game in charge of Birmingham City and the Blues will be looking to start with a victory, despite being considerable underdogs. Birmingham ended the 2019/20 EFL Championship season winless in 10, costing former Blues head coach Pep Clotet his job. Caretaker coaches Steve Spooner and Craig Gardner were also unable to steady the ship, resulting in a 20th place finish, just two points away from the relegation zone.
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Managers thoughts
Last week saw Birmingham City return to competitive action in the Carabao Cup, losing 1-0 at home to Cambridge United. After the match, Karanka stated on BluesTV:
‘‘I had the feeling that we went onto the pitch thinking we had lost 1-0 even before kick-off, and I think we need to change that mentality, we’re here to win games.”
Speaking ahead of the game, Karanka spoke about his expectations for the upcoming season, saying on Sky Sports:
”I want to finish as high as possible, I don’t want to say where today but I want to change the players mentality and style, it all needs time.”
Brentford come into this fixture off the back of Carabao Cup victory, beating newly promoted Wycombe Wanderers after a late Daryl Horgan goal forced penalties.
Brentford fell just short of a place in the Premier League last season after a 2-1 defeat in the play-off final, losing to London rivals Fulham. Head coach Thomas Frank spoke to Sky Sports in the week, and when mentioning the play-off final defeat, he said:
”Last season is history, now we need to create a new history. This league is the most competitive in the world. Our only focus is on us and getting the three points tomorrow.”
When talking about his mindset, Frank explained: ‘’We know we’re in a league where there is strong competitors, and the strongest teams are the ones that perform together, and they always know what to do.”
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Team News
Birmingham have a fully fit squad with the exception of Lukas Jutkiewicz, who missed all of pre-season with a quad injury and faces a late fitness test.
Brentford have a fully fit squad with the exception of starting goalkeeper David Raya, who is a doubt after picking up a knock in training. Brentford’s top goalscorer from last season, Ollie Watkins has also completed a move to Premier League side Aston Villa earlier this week, in a deal worth up to £33 million pounds.
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Predicted line-ups
Birmingham City: Etheridge, Pedersen, Friend, Dean, Colin, Sunjic, Kieftenbeld, Bela, Crowley, Leko, George.
Brentford: Daniels, Henry, Goode, Pinnock, Thompson, Marcondes, Jensen, Zamburek, Canos, Toney, Fosu.
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Previous meetings
The last meeting between the two sides ended in a 1-1 draw, with Jutkiewicz grabbing the opener before Ethan Pinnock's equaliser. Brentford have dominated the recent head to head history, with Birmingham winning just one of their last seven encounters with the Bees.
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How to watch
The fixture is live on Saturday at 12.30 on Sky Sports as the eagerly awaited EFL Championship season kicks off. Will the red hot favourites Brentford maintain their winning form from the last campaign or will Birmingham City cause an upset in the league full of surprises?
