Birmingham lost at Bristol City and sit 15th in the Championship table
Portsmouth have won just once since the start of September
Recommended bet: Draw
Birmingham welcome Portsmouth to St Andrew’s on Saturday afternoon in a game which will see two teams struggling for form going head-to-head in the Championship.
While the Blues have won only twice since the last week of August, Pompey have managed just one victory across September and October.
The latest Birmingham vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Team news
Birmingham have Bright Osayi-Samuel back after the Nigeria international served his ban for five yellow cards against Bristol City. The Blues could also be boosted by the availability of Demarai Gray who was fit enough to play half-an-hour at Ashton Gate having struggled with injury following the win at Preston.
Portsmouth, meanwhile, currently have a number of players in the treatment room including Adrian Segecic who is nursing an ankle injury and defender Conor Shaughnessy who is out until December.
However, Hayden Matthews is expected to play despite going off against Stoke on Saturday while Harvey Blair is also available after overcoming a hamstring problem.
The stats
Birmingham and Portsmouth have not faced each other at this level since March 2012 when Pompey ran out 4-1 winners at Fratton Park.
The Blues have scored 11 goals (only four Championship teams have netted fewer), drawing a blank on five occasions in all competitions.
Portsmouth are one of the teams to trail Birmingham in the scoring charts, finding the net just six times in the last eight matches.
Birmingham have kept only two clean sheets in seven matches at St Andrew’s this season.
Portsmouth have not won away from home since the opening day victory over Oxford United at the Kassam Stadium.
The latest Birmingham vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
Prediction
Birmingham were often mentioned when fans and pundits considered which teams could push for the top six and a play-off spot this season but so far it just hasn’t happened for the Blues, who have found winning hard to come by.
Having romped to the League One title in the last campaign, Birmingham appeared to do good business to improve the side but they have struggled to find the net at a regular rate.
The Championship season started brightly with seven points from nine before they lost four in five.
Manager Chris Davies has struggled to rediscover that August form and his side failed to build on the win at Preston, losing 1-0 at Bristol City last Saturday.
Portsmouth are experiencing similar struggles and have won just three games all campaign. Only Sheffield United have scored fewer goals than Pompey, with last season’s top scorer Colby Bishop only finding the net once so far this season.
It could be that the two teams current difficulties mean they cancel each other out and a stalemate ensues.
A point would suit Portsmouth more on the road, though Birmingham haven’t shown enough this month to suggest they would make home advantage count.
Back the draw at 5/2 with LiveScore Bet
The latest Birmingham vs Portsmouth odds are available on LiveScore Bet
