After ending a lengthy winless run last Saturday, Millwall will be looking to breathe new life into their promotion playoff quest. They host Birmingham City on Tuesday and with the visitors looking out of sorts, particularly on the road, a home win is expected here.
Millwall ended a four-match winless run last time out as they claimed a 2-0 victory over Preston North End in their previous Championship fixture. Goals in each half from Tom Bradshaw and Zian Flemming were enough to earn them all three points.
One positive for Millwall is that they did not fall out of the promotion playoff places during their difficult spell. Gary Rowett’s men are currently fifth on the table and having returned to winning ways, their task for the rest of the season will be to consolidate their position and keep alive their promotion hopes.
Given the importance of home form in the promotion race, it is critical for Millwall to start getting things right in front their fans. While they still slightly erratic at the Den, the Lions can count a 2-0 victory over Swansea and a 3-2 win over Sheffield United among their recent results at home.
While Millwall are getting their campaign back on track, Birmingham City are still struggling to find their best form. They have won just three of their last 12 Championship matches and remain in the bottom half of the table, although there is no present relegation danger.
Birmingham City travel to the Den off the back of a 2-1 defeat to Sunderland in their previous Championship fixture. They failed to build on an early opener from George Hall and were breached twice by the Black Cats.
The defeat at Sunderland is a pointer to Birmingham City’s struggles on their travels this season. John Eustace’s men have claimed just one win from their last 10 away matches in the Championship, suffering six defeats in that run.
How the bookies view it
The bookies have installed Millwall as overwhelming favourites with a home win priced at 4/5 by bet365. A victory for Birmingham City is valued at 4/1 by Unibet while a draw is set at 5/2 by Betfred.
Recent head to head
Millwall and Birmingham City played out a 0-0 draw in the reverse fixture back in November. However, the Lions have won the last two meetings at the Den.
Players to watch
Tom Bradshaw and Zian Flemming will be the ones to watch on Tuesday after scoring last time out to take their tallies to 15 and 14 goals respectively. William Hill is offering odds of 21/10 on Flemming to score anytime while Bradshaw is priced at 12/5 by bet365 in the same market.
Despite being in the middle of a goal drought, Scott Hogan will still be the one to watch for Birmingham City. The striker remains the top scorer for the Blues with 10 goals this season and is priced at 4/1 by Paddy Power to score anytime.
Anything else catch the eye?
Two of the last three meetings between Millwall and Birmingham City have produced over 3.5 goals and a repeat is priced at 18/5 with Unibet. Over 2.5 goals is valued at 11/8 by Unibet while Paddy Power is offering odds of 11/10 on both teams to score.
Millwall scored in both halves in the win over Preston North End and could be set for a similar outcome at 23/10 with Unibet.
This England Championship match between Millwall and Birmingham City will be played on Apr 18, 2023 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Millwall vs Birmingham City prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
