Birmingham vs Sheff Wed Prediction: Rooney still searching for first win

Birmingham City welcome Sheffield Wednesday to St Andrew's on Saturday afternoon (15:00) in the Championship as Blues boss Wayne Rooney still searches for his first win in charge.

We've picked out a couple of the markets that might off the best value for this second tier contest.

Match Odds

Birmingham are 21/20 to secure Rooney's first victory here. A draw is available at 21/10, while Sheffield Wednesday are 12/5 to apply more pressure on the Blues' manager.

Both teams to score in this one is valued at 10/11. Over 2.5 goals is priced at 6/5.

Team News

Alfie Chang remains Birmingham's long-term injury absentee, while Keshi Anderson, Lee Buchanan and Kevin Long are doubtful to feature. George Hall has returned to training but it remains to be seen whether Saturday will come too soon for him.

Momo Diaby and Juan Delgado remain unavailable for the Owls.

Both teams to score @ 10/11

It is very difficult to see how this match will pan out over the weekend and both sets of supporters won't be confident heading into it. Rooney's side have been woeful defensively since he took over from John Eustace, who had built a largely solid defence during his year in charge. Now the Blues' defenders look lost and appear vulnerable to conceding each time they are attacked.

However, they possess a bright young talent in Jay Stansfield who we can clearly see is a natural goalscorer. His six Championship goals for Birmingham this term saw him rewarded with his first England Under-21s call up this month, and that is a spot he will not want to give up now so he must continue to deliver the goods in blue and white.

This match looks like it is going to be scrappy and both teams will likely get punished for mistakes that they continue to make.

Jay Stansfield to score anytime @ 11/5

As Rooney remains desperate for his first win, and the Blues fans feel like they are yet to see any improvement in the style of play that was meant to excite them, both are putting all their faith in Stansfield at the moment.

He is the one player in the squad who only needs a half-chance to score, as some of his goals for the West Midlands outfit already this season have shown. Wednesday's defence is looking to improve under Danny Rohl but they will find it tough to keep quiet this lethal marksman. Especially when his side are so reliant on him to help them get back to winning ways.

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