West Bromwich Albion have had a mixed start to their Championship campaign. Darren Moore’s side have collected 10 points from their first 6 league games and are 9th spot on the standings.
The Baggies must be high on confidence, though, after beating Stoke City 2-1 before the international break. On Friday, West Brom are due to make a trip to St. Andrew’s to face Birmingham City in the derby fixture. Birmingham are yet to win a league game this season.
Matt Phillips, James Morrison and Dwight Gayle are expected to be available for the clash against the Blues. Oliver Burke withdrew from the international duty owing to a knee injury but he is expected to be fit for the upcoming fixture.
Defence
Sam Johnstone is set to under the bar yet again. The former Manchester United shot-stopper has been impressive with the gloves so far this season and has been reliable between the sticks for the Baggies.
Ahmed Hegazi, Kyle Bartley and Craig Dawson are expected to start in what will be a three-man backline. Bartley has mustered 1.8 tackles, 4.5 clearances and 1.2 blocks per game on an average and has been a key figure for his side.
Wing-backs
While Matt Phillips is likely to get the nod to start in the right wing-back position, Kieran Gibbs is expected to occupy the opposite flank.
Phillips and Gibbs have the energy and pace to maraud forward on a regular basis and stretch the Birmingham defence.
Midfield
Jake Livermore and Chris Brunt should keep their position in central midfield. Livermore has been a key cog in the engine room and the team will once again rely on his sound passing and positioning skills. He has a pass accuracy of 82.7% so far this season.
Attack
Jay Rodriguez and Dwight Gayle are anticipated to start together up top. Gayle is oozing class at the moment and found the back of the net twice against the Potters. Rodriguez, meanwhile, has complemented him pretty well.
Harvey Barnes has made a strong impression already at the club owing to his pace and ability to pick up pockets of spaces and he is expected to start as the central attacking midfielder. He has started in all of the 6 league games so far and has scored 2 goals in the process.
Statistics Credits: WhoScored
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