Wolves v Birmingham preview

Zubar: Missed out against Chelsea

PREDICTIONS

skysports.com prediction: Wolves 1 Birmingham 1

Sky Bet odds: Wolves 11/8 Draw 9/4 Birmingham 2/1.

One to watch: Kevin Doyle.

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• Wolverhampton Wanderers

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Wolves host Midlands rivals Birmingham at Molineux on Sunday in what could prove to be a relegation six-pointer.

Despite finishing behind Wolves in the Championship last season, Birmingham have seemingly got to grips with the Premier League quicker than their local rivals.

The Blues are currently five points better off than Wolves in the table and sit pretty in 13th while Mick McCarthy's men struggle in 19th.

Birmingham have also picked up a bit of form going into the clash having gone four games unbeaten including wins over Sunderland and Fulham and a credible draw at home to Manchester City.

Wolves on the other hand go into the game on the back of two heavy defeats, albeit against Arsenal and Chelsea, and McCarthy will be looking for a response at the weekend.

At times Wolves' results this season have not been a fair reflection on their performances with a number of big decisions not going their way.

The game itself should be an intriguing contest with Wolves winning only once in six games at Molineux this term while Birmingham boast an equally poor away record having won just once in their six matches on their travels.

Wolves news

Defender Ronald Zubar has not played since the 4-1 defeat to Arsenal due to a thigh injury but he could return.

Fellow defender Matt Hill (foot) has suffered from bad luck with injuries this season but he too could be back in contention.

Long-term casualty Stephen Ward is also nearing a comeback having picked up a knee injury earlier in the season although the Birmingham game could have come too soon for the forward-turned-defender.

Stand-in goalkeeper Matt Murray has suffered a setback in his recovery from a long-term knee injury and will not be available while Chris Iwelumo (metatarsal) and David Jones (knee) are still out but could feature next week.

Blues news

Defender Stuart Parnaby (back) and midfielder Damien Johnson (hamstring) could both return for the short trip to Wolves to boost manager Alex McLeish.

However striker Garry O'Connor is out until March with a hip injury while midfielder Teemu Tainio (knee) will also sit out.

Defensive duo Martin Taylor (ankle) and David Murphy (knee) both miss out with the club unsure how long they could be absent for.

Probable starting XIs

Wolves: Hennessey, Stearman, Berra, Craddock, Henry, Halford, Surman, Edwards, Kightly, Ebanks-Blake, Doyle.

Birmingham: Hart, Ridgewell, Carr, Dann, Roger Johnson, Bowyer, Larsson, Ferguson, McFadden, Jerome, Benitez.