The EFL Championship kicks off with a new set of matches on Wednesday, with Bournemouth hosting Birmingham City at the Vitality Stadium.
The Cherries were knocked out of the FA Cup by Boreham Wood the last time they played and will be hoping to put that dismal defeat behind them as soon as possible. Boreham Wood upset Bournemouth with a 1-0 FA Cup victory over the bottom-tier side on Sunday.
The Cherries will now focus on the EFL Championship, where they broke a two-game losing streak on January 29 with a 1-0 win over Barnsley. Bournemouth is presently third in the league table, six points behind first-placed Fulham, with 52 points from 28 games.
Bournemouth Form: W-L-L-W-L
Birmingham City, however, continued their poor start in the EFL Championship, losing 2-1 to Sheffield United last time out. They have only won one of their last 11 games in all competitions, losing six and drawing four.
Birmingham City is presently in 18th place in the Championship table, with 33 points from 30 games. Bournemouth has dominated this match in the past, winning 14 of the last 21 meetings between the two clubs. In that time, Birmingham City has only secured three wins, with four games ending in a draw.
Birmingham City Form: L-W-D-D-L
Bournemouth vs Birmingham City Team News
Bournemouth
Robert Brady, Junior Stanislas, and Adam Smith are all out due to injuries and will not be able to play. After being diagnosed with cancer, David Brooks is no longer in the running.
Birmingham City
Troy Deeney and Taylor Richards, who are both recovering from injuries, are still out for the visitors.
Bournemouth Predicted XI (4-3-3): Orjan Nyland; Leif Davis, Zeno Rossi, Lloyd Kelly, Nathan Moriah-Walsh; Jaidon Anthony, Ben Pearson, Emiliano Marcondes; Morgan Rogers, Jamal Lowe, Diminic Solanke
Birmingham City Predicted XI (3-5-2): Neil Etheridge; Marc Roberts, Teden Mengi, Maxime Colin; Ivan Sunjic, Ryan Woods, Gary Gardner, Jeremie Bela, Kristian Pedersen; Onel Hernandez, Lukas Jutkiewicz
Our prediction:
Bournemouth will be looking to reclaim some honour following their FA Cup exit last season. The Cherries have won each of their last eight games against Birmingham City, and we expect them to continue their winning streak on Wednesday.
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