Portsmouth vs Birmingham Prediction: Pompey Chimes to Ring Out in Joy

The EFL Championship comes to a close this Saturday as all the teams play in the 12:30 window with several matches important for the promotion chase. This is not one of them however as the fans at Fratton Park will be treated to a proper pressure-off end-of-season matchup.

Our resident Pompey mush thought they were all but down a month or so ago but he’s relaxed enough to preview the action and give his Portsmouth vs Birmingham Predictions for the lunchtime kick-off, live on Sky Sports+...

If you asked most football fans who were the form team in the second tier over the past five matches, you’d have several say Coventry, many would look at Southampton but few would actually say 18-placed Portsmouth. Yet it is John Mousinho’s men who have acquired 12 points from their past five games.

A change to a more direct style following the 6-1 hammering at QPR has seen a spectacular rise from the relegation scrap and league survival for the second year running. Pompey fans will be content with the campaign having seen a first XI decimated by injuries at times and the lowest wage bill in the Championship.

It is a little bit different for Birmingham supporters however as they were looking to compete for the play-offs. Another summer of heavy spending saw the bookies confident they would at the very least be playing additional matches after the 46. They were 4/7 pre-season for a top-six finish but they’ve been unable to put up a concerted challenge on those positions.

Jay Stansfield has been unable to follow-up his outstanding 24/25 campaign in League 1 having scored just the ten times in 43 matches compared to 19 last term.

The Blues are in decent form being undefeated in their past four, winning twice and drawing the other two matches but it has just been too little, too late and they’ll need to go ahead in the off-season if they are to match the ambitions of their owners.

Recent Form (Last Five Matches):

Portsmouth: W W W L W

Birmingham: L W D W W

Match Odds:

Portsmouth are the betting favourites to end their EFL Championship campaign with a victory. You can back the home side at 6/4 for the win, which is a 40% chance of getting the result when we turn the odds into implied probability. Birmingham can be backed at 13/8, which is a 38% shot with the draw the least likely result with a 29% possibility of happening.

BTTS and Over 2.5 Goals are both odds-on at 4/6 and 4/5 respectively with Birmingham's Kyogo Furuhashi the favourite to score anytime at 8/5 despite being unlikely to feature due to a shoulder injury. His teammate Jay Stansfield is just behind at 7/4, which is the same price as Pompey's number nine, Colby Bishop.

Bet 1 - Portsmouth -1 Handicap @ 18/5

It should be a nice day on the South Coast and I’m expecting Birmingham’s players to be looking at Southsea seafront lovingly and looking forward to their summer holidays. In matches where there is little to play for on the final day, I always lean towards the hosts with the home support urging their side on.

Winning by more than one has only happened five times this calendar year but the feel-good factor is flowing around Fratton Park and Pompey fans should be celebrating.

Bet 2 - Portsmouth Win, Adrian Segecic to score anytime & Woodwork to be hit @ 6/1 (via Bet Builder)

I’ve already stated above that I like Pompey to win but here is a way to boost the price with another couple of legs.

Adrian Segecic has enjoyed a fruitful first season in English football and in recent weeks, he’s certainly found his shooting boots. He scored from outside the area in both the Coventry and Stoke matches and in the latter, that goal was his third, earning him his first hat-trick since his move from the A-League. He has every chance to find the back of the net again.

The third leg is one that boosts the Bet Builder from 4/1 to 6/1 and I always like the post or bar to reverberate at least once a match.

You can read all our latest Football Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub.

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