Birmingham headed to The New Lawn for their third-round FA Cup tie with Forest Green following four-straight losses in the Championship, John Eustace’s worst run since taking the reins at the start of the season.
Blues have looked fatigued and uncharacteristically disorganised since returning from the World Cup break, and that worrying theme continued in the first half in Gloucestershire as Forest Green deservedly led at the half-time interval courtesy of a sweet strike from Ben Stevenson.
A triple substitution and a departure from a back three ensued during the half-time break, which changed the course of the game, with goals from Lukas Jutkiewiczand Kevin Long securing Blues’ passage into the fourth round – although Neil Etheridge had to be at his acrobatic best to avoid an unwanted replay.
The aim now will be to take the momentum from that success into the Championship, where Birmingham are sitting in 18th position, six points above the relegation zone and nine behind sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion.
Injuries have impacted the progression of Eustace’s close-knit squad – especially in defensive areas – with the 43-year-old keen to remind supporters and players alike that they must stick together through the inevitable tough periods of a 46-game Championship season.
Preston also managed to secure their place in the fourth round of the FA Cup after beating Huddersfield Town 3-1 a fortnight ago, but the Lilywhites were unable to record three-straight wins in all competitions as they were trashed 4-0 by Norwich last weekend.
Championship legend Teemu Pukki and Kieran Dowell both bagged braces at Deepdale for David Wagner’s side, with Preston unable to contain the Canaries in their heaviest loss of the campaign to date.
Links >> Stream 1 HD Stream 2 HD Stream 3 HD Stream 4 HD
The period at the start of the season when Ryan Lowe’s men were freakishly hard to score against is a distant memory – Preston have kept just one clean sheet in their last nine matches, a record which has made it difficult for North End to keep pace with the league’s top six.
Preston are currently 13th in the league standings, four points behind West Brom in sixth, and considering the form of the likes of the Baggies and Michael Carrick’s Middlesbrough, Lowe’s men need to string a few wins together in order to reignite their playoff dreams.
The Lilywhites have been expert travellers so far this season – collecting 24 points from 13 outings – and should be confident heading to a ground where they are unbeaten in their last three visits.
