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A curveball to cope without fab four - How Birmingham City can line up against Wrexham

Birmingham City's Paik Seung-ho is a major doubt for the Wrexham match
-Credit:Reach Publishing Services Limited


Chris Davies might have to go into Birmingham City’s biggest game of the season without four key players.

Influential quartet Paik Seung-ho, Tomoki Iwata, Willum Willumsson and Keshi Anderson are all nursing injury issues going into round two of the ‘Hollywood Derby’ at the Racecourse Ground.

Blues coped without them to ease past Exeter City on Saturday but Wrexham will pose a sterner test. The Red Dragons are unbeaten at home in League One this season having won 12 of their 14 matches.

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The chances are Davies will select the same defence which reduced Exeter to zero attempts at goal. Ethan Laird’s form should see him start at right-back alongside defensive shoo-ins Christoph Klarer, Ben Davies and Alex Cochrane.

Marc Leonard and Taylor Gardner-Hickman will likely take to the field in the absence of Paik and Iwata – but there is a midfield curveball Davies could throw at Wrexham. Krystian Bielik played the final seven minutes plus stoppage time against Exeter in midfield, most likely just to protect the lead Blues had, but the skipper could be an option against Wrexham if Davies wants to shore things up.

Wrexham have scored 12 goals from set pieces – only five teams have managed more – so Bielik’s presence would make Blues stronger on that front, too. He doesn’t, however, have the mobility and agility in midfield of Paik, Iwata, Leonard or Gardner-Hickman so his selection in that position would be quite conservative on Davies’ part.

In the attacking positions it’s hard to look beyond Scott Wright, Jay Stansfield and Alfie May, then it’s a question of Luke Harris or Lyndon Dykes in the number 10 position. Again, Dykes’ physical presence could work in his favour on this occasion.

Possible XI to face Wrexham

Blues (4-2-3-1): Allsop; Laird, Klarer, Davies, Cochrane; Leonard, Gardner-Hickman; Wright, Dykes, Stansfield; May

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