Liam Kelly previews Sheffield United's trip to face Birmingham at St. Andrew's, expecting the away side to continue their good form.
Football betting tips: Championship
1pt Sheffield United to win and Over 2.5 Goals at 27/10 (Coral)
Birmingham enter this game on the back of a desperately disappointing 2-2 with Derby on Sunday, shipping two late goals after looking like surefire winners at Pride Park (xG: DER 1.33 - 2.06 BIR).
That result moved Birmingham up to 17th place in the table, but it really shouldn't be labelled as a positive.
Sheffield United, on the other hand, made light work of strugglers Peterborough on Saturday night, beating Posh with consummate ease to make it five wins in seven Sky Bet Championship games under Paul Heckingbottom.
Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Friday
TV Channel: Sky Sports Main Event
Birmingham 13/5 | Draw 12/5 | Sheffield United 21/20
The 2-0 victory in Peterborough was indicative of just how solid the Blades have been recently, putting themselves back in the play-off picture with a string of good performances.
Heckingbottom's side have averaged 1.66 expected goals for (xGF) and 0.83 expected goals against (xGA) per game since he took charge, looking especially threatening in attack lately.
Against a Birmingham team that have conceded a total of 23 goals (15.4 xGA) in their last nine Championship matches, United can expect some joy in that area again.
Lee Bowyer's side do manage to cause opposition problems, though, scoring 12 goals of their own during that same period — despite winning just one game.
With that in mind, backing SHEFFIELD UNITED TO WIN AND OVER 2.5 GOALS is the selection at a nice price of 27/10 for this match-up.
Although unbeaten in their last three, Birmingham have faced the teams currently languishing in the relegation places (Barnsley, Peterborough and Derby).
Sheffield United are a completely different proposition at the moment, playing at a level reminiscent of a team competing for promotion.
Even if Birmingham manage to sneak a goal past a sharp Blades defence, I'd expect the visitors to win. Take the bigger price about them to do so with three or more goals scored in the game.
Birmingham v Sheffield United best bets and score prediction
- 1pt Sheffield United to win and Over 2.5 Goals at 27/10 (Coral)
Score prediction: Birmingham 1-3 Sheffield United (Sky Bet odds: 16/1)
Odds correct at 12.45 GMT (01/02/22)
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