Championship betting tips: Sheffield United v Birmingham best bets and preview
Liam Kelly previews Birmingham's trip to face the Sheffield United at Bramall Lane, expecting a fair amount of success for the Blades.
Football betting tips: Championship
1pt Sheffield United to win and Under 3.5 Goals in the match at 13/10 (bet365, Boylesports)
Sheffield United begin their pursuit of a return to the top tier with the visit of Birmingham to Bramall Lane on Saturday night, looking to start far better than they did last term — this time in front of fans.
The Blades had a nightmarish 2020/21 Premier League season, suffering relegation after just 32 matches played, but they have retained much of their squad entering the new Sky Bet Championship campaign.
Kick-off time: 20:00 BST, Saturday
TV Channel: Sky Sports Football
Sheff Utd 4/5 | Draw 12/5 | Birmingham 15/4
Slaviša Jokanović is a fresh face in the United dugout, taking over as permanent manager from caretaker boss Paul Heckingbottom. The appointment of the Serb, who has already achieved two promotions at this level, is undoubtedly a positive.
Although they struggled desperately to put scoring chances away last season, scoring just 20 goals from 34.7 expected goals (xG), David McGoldrick, Oli McBurnie and Rhian Brewster have all proven to be excellent in the second tier, offering hope that the Blades can be serious contenders for promotion this season.
Birmingham, on the other hand, will not be in the conversation when mentioning teams that could go up in my book. They needed a solid run under Lee Bowyer at the end of the season to avoid the drop, finishing in 18th place.
Little has changed in terms of personnel, the only notable addition being Chuks Aneke, making it hard to envisage much more possible improvement from a Birmingham team that averaged 1.00 expected goals for (xGF) and 1.35 expected goals against (xGA) per game last term.
As a result, I see the Blues struggling away from home in the opener. Sheffield United simply have too much quality in comparison to their opponents.
Birmingham's tendency to be involved in tight games might keep them in the fixture, though, so SHEFFIELD UNITED TO WIN AND UNDER 3.5 GOALS makes appeal at the price of 13/10.
The Blades can banish the memories of their horror start to the 2020/21 campaign with a solid win here, a likely scenario considering the gulf in class between the two teams.
Sheffield United v Birmingham best bets and score prediction
- 1pt Sheffield United to win and Under 3.5 Goals in the match at 13/10 (bet365, Boylesports)
Score prediction: Sheffield United 2-1 Birmingham (Sky Bet odds: 15/2)
Odds correct at 0740 BST (06/08/21)
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