Bielik replacement and selection dilemmas as Birmingham City XI predicted for Rotherham
The last time Birmingham City went to Rotherham then-manager Gary Rowett changed a winning XI and was chastised for it.
It wasn’t so much that Koji Miyoshi was removed from the XI that had comprehensively beaten Coventry City the previous week, it was more the fact that Oliver Burke – who hadn’t started a league game since New Year’s Day and hadn’t been involved for almost three months – was chosen to replace him. You know what happened next.
Chris Davies is facing a similar dilemma heading into Blues’ meeting with the Millers on Saturday afternoon (3pm). The only difference being that Davies has to make at least one change to the team that battered Wrexham due to Krystian Bielik’s suspension.
Ben Davies is expected to take Bielik’s place alongside Christoph Klarer. Alex Cochrane should continue at left-back and it would be a surprise to see Alfons Sampsted preferred to Taylor Gardner-Hickman at right-back after the latter’s performance on Monday.
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Bailey Peacock-Farrell is having a difficult time in goal at present with Ryan Allsop breathing down his neck. Changing the goalkeeper of a winning XI is unusual, but Peacock-Farrell’s position is under threat due to some error-strewn outings.
Davies surely can't make a change in midfield after Paik Seung-ho and Tomoki Iwata’s stellar showings against Wrexham. Paik and Iwata would be one of the best midfield pairings in the Championship, let alone League One.
As ever, it’s in attack where most of the dilemmas arrive. Blues played without an orthodox right-winger against Wrexham and you wouldn’t bet against them doing something similar versus a Rotherham side that plays a 4-4-2 diamond. Rotherham are the most direct team in League One in almost every metric. They boast a League One leading 35.8 aerial balls won, the fourth most long balls (80) and by far and away the most crosses (31) per match. Only two players in Rotherham’s last league line-up are shorter than 5ft 11ins.
With that in mind, the physical presence of Willum Willumsson will be required. Alfie May and Jay Stansfield should start and no one understands the left-wing position in Blues’ system better than Emil Hansson.
Lyndon Dykes could be considered to give Blues’ another big body on set pieces but Davies constantly stresses that the style won’t change, so why would the personnel be altered on this occasion? Blues have just played their best match of the season so, other than the enforced absence of Bielik, Davies cannot be expected to do anything differently.
Our predicted line-up
(4-2-3-1): Peacock-Farrell; Gardner-Hickman, Klarer, Davies, Cochrane; Paik, Iwata; Willumsson, May, Hansson; Stansfield
An alternative...
(4-2-3-1): Allsop; Sampsted, Klarer, Davies, Cochrane; Paik, Iwata; Willumsson, Stansfield, Hansson; Dykes