Birmingham host Southampton at St Andrew’s on Tuesday, kick-off 20:00, with the two clubs entering the match in positive form. Chris Davies’ side remain unbeaten, while the visitors have responded to their opening defeat with consecutive victories.
Birmingham have collected five points from their opening three league matches. They began with a goalless draw at Sheffield United, recovered twice to draw 2-2 with Bristol City and then earned their first win by beating Wrexham 2-1.
Their underlying record is balanced, with 4.45 xG created and 3.85 xGA allowed. Birmingham are averaging nine shots and 2.67 efforts on target per game, showing their unbeaten start has been built more on resilience than sustained attacking pressure.
Southampton lost 2-1 at Watford before beating Stoke 3-1 and Millwall 5-1. Those results have moved them onto two points after they began the campaign with a four-point deduction following last season’s Spygate scandal.
Tonda Eckert’s side have produced one of the strongest attacking profiles in the Championship. Their average of 2.41 xG ranks alongside 18.67 shots and 3.67 big chances per match, while an overall ratio of 0.65 underlines their control across the opening three fixtures.
Birmingham’s team news is more settled after Phil Neumann scored twice at Wrexham. His first came from Alex Cochrane’s corner before August Priske supplied the cross for his winning header.
Southampton are preparing for a defensive change. Taylor Harwood-Bellis is close to joining Aston Villa, with Jack Stephens expected to replace him at centre-back. The visitors also have a short recovery period after Saturday’s win over Millwall.
How the bookies view it
Birmingham are 158/100, implying a 38.8% chance of winning. The draw is 5/2, which represents 28.6%, while Southampton are 9/5, carrying an implied probability of 35.7%.
Over 2.5 goals is priced at 17/20, implying 54.1%, with under 2.5 available at 1/1, or 50%. Both teams to score is 7/10 for yes, representing 58.8%, while no is 6/5, implying 45.5%.
Head to head: Recent records is evenly balanced
The overall record is balanced, with seven wins apiece and four draws across 18 meetings since December 2002.
Southampton are unbeaten in the last four, winning three before a 1-1 draw at St Andrew’s in December 2025. Those fixtures contained 17 goals, with three finishing over 2.5.
Player to watch: Cyle Larin back to his best after World Cup
Cyle Larin has scored four league goals this season, finding the net in each of Southampton’s three matches.
The Canada striker opened his account at Watford before scoring against Stoke after eight minutes. He then struck twice against Millwall, first heading in Ryan Manning’s free-kick before producing an individual finish after the interval.
His movement behind defenders and strength in the air give Southampton different routes into the Birmingham penalty area. He enters this fixture as the Championship’s most consistent early scorer.
Predicted lineups
Birmingham (4-2-3-1): Beadle, Osayi-Samuel, Neumann, Klarer, Cochrane, Iwata, Solis, Vicente, Gray, Stansfield, Priske.
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Peretz, Bree, Stephens, Schlotterbeck, Manning, Bragg, Downes, Matsuki, Azaz, Scienza, Larin.
Anything else catch the eye
Birmingham’s only home game exposed some defensive weaknesses. Bristol City recorded 15 shots, six efforts on target and four big chances, while Davies admitted his team lacked fluency and allowed too much space on the counter-attack.
Southampton also showed vulnerability in their first away match. Watford scored twice inside the opening 30 minutes after punishing a misplaced pass and then breaking forward for the second goal.
Both teams still carry enough attacking threat to take advantage. Birmingham have scored four times across their last two fixtures, while Southampton have registered nine league goals in total.
Every Southampton match has produced at least three goals, with both sides scoring on each occasion. Birmingham’s previous two games have also cleared the 2.5 line after their low-event opener at Bramall Lane.
Southampton’s chance creation gives them the stronger attacking profile, but the loss of Harwood-Bellis and their failure to keep a clean sheet leave Birmingham with a clear route to goal. Over 2.5 goals is the bet at 17/20.
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