Birmingham City are giving it a go to avoid another season of struggle ahead of Preston North End clash

With plenty going on off the pitch, owner troubles and the untimely departure of manager Lee Bowyer, it has been a tough few years for the Midlands club.

They have been tipped by many to be one of the three to be relegated this season but there is talent amongst the ranks at St Andrews.

Birmingham had one of the older squads in the division but have set about changing that this summer.

They’ve injected some younger players into the team, such as promising talents Hannibal Mejbri, Dion Sanderson, and Emmanuel Longelo have come in on loan.Former favourite Tahith Chong is reportedly set to return to the Blues too, this time on a permanent deal having enjoyed a spell there on loan last season. Mejbri made his debut as a substitute in Birmingham’s 2-1 defeat to Norwich City. The 19-year-old is a highly rated and versatile midfielder who already has a few Manchester United appearances under his belt and 16 caps for Tunisia.

At the other end of the ptich and scale when it comes to age, John Ruddy was a relatively early acquisition and has gone straight in as John Eustace’s first-choice goalkeeper. He hasn’t played regularly since 2018 but has plenty of experience of promotion from the division and is a well respected figure in the dressing room, which could be a key factor should the going get rough.

Like North End, Birmingham have found goals hard to come by this season and other than the Lilywhites, they have the joint worst goal record so far.

Scott Hogan has scored two of their four goals, he’s likely to be there go-to man to find the net this campaign. The former Brentford man scored 10 times last season, including one in a 1-1 draw at Deepdale in January.

Blues boss Eustace will have to find a way for his side to score goals if they are to survive, and this is only his second job in management. His only previous experience of being in the top job came at Kidderminster Harriers, where he spent two years from 2016.

He was clearly trusted by Birmingham, having left his role Queens Park Rangers this summer, as he signed a three-year-deal to replace outgoing boss Lee Bowyer.

It certainly hasn’t all been smooth sailing so far for the 42-year-old, with a loud exchanging of words being heard from inside the dressing room after their defeat to Rotherham United last weekend.

Blues fans will be hoping for some sort of response from Birmingham, who have lost their last three league games, one of those against Wigan Athletic who spent the majority of the game with 10 men.

They also have it all to do if history is anything to go by. They have won just once in their last 18 away games in the league and have won only two of their last 17 league games against PNE.

City have yet to score away from home this season, and of course, North End are yet to concede. Ryan Lowe’s side are also yet to score at home in the league however and something has to give.