Huddersfield Town vs Birmingham City. The FA Cup Fourth Round.
The John Smith's StadiumAttendance13,047.
Saturday 27 January 2018 14:49, UK
Huddersfield look set to make a number of changes when they host Birmingham in the fourth round of the FA Cup on Saturday.
The Terriers rotated heavily in the last round as they scored twice in the second half to win 2-1 at Bolton.
And manager David Wagner again plans to give opportunities to fringe players against Birmingham, who are battling relegation from the Championship.
"The only thing I can confirm, is that if everything goes according to plan then Joel Coleman will start in goal on Saturday," said Wagner.
"That is the only position I have got my head around - anything else is open. Rotation happens anytime for us, cup or league, I don't rotate to keep the players happy - I only rotate if I have the feeling it makes sense and we are successful and the players are able to perform."
Huddersfield's win over Bolton is their only positive result this year as they have lost all three of their Premier League matches.
Birmingham, meanwhile, are second from bottom in the Championship but have only lost one of their last five games in all competitions.
Huddersfield will be without long-term absentee Elias Kachunga and Jon Gorenc Stankovic, who has returned to training but is not ready to feature.
Philip Billing is hoping to make his first start in over three months while January signing Alex Pritchard is cup-tied.
Midfielder Craig Gardner is a doubt for Birmingham with a leg injury while Isaac Vassell is likely to miss out (knee) and goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak could return.
This will be the eighth time that Huddersfield have faced Birmingham in the FA Cup (W4 D1 L2), with their most recent encounter coming in January 2008 - the Terriers won 2-1 at the John Smith's Stadium.
Huddersfield are looking to reach the FA Cup fifth round in successive seasons for the first time since 1938-39.
The Blues haven't reached the fifth round of the FA Cup since 2012, losing to eventual champions Chelsea after beating Sheffield United 4-0 in the fourth round.
Huddersfield Town have won just one of their last seven competitive matches (W1 D3 L3), but this did come in the FA Cup; winning 2-1 at Bolton Wanderers.
