Sports Mole previews Sunday’s League One clash between Birmingham City and Mansfield Town, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
On the verge of breaking the third-tier points record, centurions Birmingham City will host Mansfield Town at St Andrew’s @ Knighthead Park on Sunday afternoon in League One.
Blues reached and surpassed the 100-point mark by defeating Stevenage on the road earlier in the week, whilst the Stags have been dwelling over an Easter Monday nightmare versus Reading.
Match preview
© Imago
Following a lacklustre goalless draw at home versus Crawley Town on Good Friday, Birmingham have moved two steps closer to legendary status in League One, securing back-to-back victories at Burton Albion and Stevenage, taking the Second City club to 102 points for the campaign.
Blues need only a single victory from their remaining three fixtures to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers’ third-tier record points tally of 103 during the 2013-14 term, meaning that Chris Davies‘s men are unbelievably close to becoming the best side this division has ever seen – at least judging off the league rankings.
Whilst records could be broken at St Andrew’s this weekend, it is a certainty that Birmingham will lift the League One trophy in front of 29,000 supporters following the conclusion of the Mansfield battle, with Sunday afternoon’s hosts set to bask in the glory of their final home match of the campaign after winning the league with six games to spare.
Davies’s side are the only outfit in the third tier who still have their unbeaten home status intact heading into the final knockings of the 2024-25 season, with Blues winning a staggering 18 of their 22 clashes in the Second City, dropping points on just four occasions.
With their primary team objective already completed, some of Birmingham’s star-studded crop will be focusing on grabbing individual awards before the end of the term, none more so than Jay Stansfield, who is two goals behind Leyton Orient’s Charlie Kelman (21) in the League One Golden Boot race.
© Imago
Enjoying a five-game winning run in League One near the start of the season, newly-promoted Mansfield were threatening to launch an unlikely push for the playoffs, but a wretched change of fortunes in recent times has left Sunday’s visitors at risk of relegation.
The Stags’ winless streak stretched to a worrying five matches on Easter Monday, when a second-half Keanu Baccus strike was a mere consolation at a despondent One Call Stadium, where Nigel Clough‘s men were the recipients of a 5-1 battering at the hands of playoff-chasing Reading.
Collecting just the single point across their last five third-tier battles, Mansfield have slumped down to 19th spot in the League One standings with only three games remaining, five points ahead of Bristol Rovers in the highest of the relegation places at this crucial stage of the term.
Having played a game fewer than their fellow strugglers, the Stags know that a point at St Andrew’s this weekend would all-but secure their spot in the third tier for another season – a major achievement when compared to their years of non-league hardship at the beginning of the 2010s.
Mansfield are one of 10 sides in League One who have forced Birmingham to drop points this season, with the East Midlands outfit securing a 1-1 draw against Blues at One Call Stadium in October, when Lee Gregory equalised for the hosts following an early opener from Willum Willumsson.
Birmingham City League One form:
Birmingham City form (all competitions):
Mansfield Town League One form:
Team News
© Imago
Birmingham are expected to field their first-team stars from the off during the final home contest of a record-breaking campaign, meaning that Stansfield, Tomoki Iwata and Alex Cochrane should be named in the XI.
Despite impressing across the last two matches, Scotland international Grant Hanley is likely to make way for Christoph Klarer in defence on Sunday.
Blues remain without the services of Lyndon Dykes, Scott Wright and Emil Hansson, with the trio set to miss the remainder of the season.
After being run ragged by Reading earlier in the week, Mansfield could make a number of alterations to their XI, with the likes of Alfie Kilgour and Elliott Hewitt in danger of being dropped.
With a visit to the league’s most potent attack on the agenda, the Stags may opt to bring experienced defender Aden Flint into defence at St Andrew’s.
Birmingham City possible starting lineup:
Allsop; Laird, Klarer, Davies, Cochrane; Paik, Iwata; Dowell, Willumsson, Anderson; Stansfield
Mansfield Town possible starting lineup:
Pym; Oshilaja, Williams, Flint; Vickers, Lewis, Reed, Baccus, Bowery; Rhodes, Maris
We say: Birmingham City 2-0 Mansfield Town
After 22 league matches unbeaten at St Andrew’s, Birmingham should have no issues putting out-of-form Mansfield to the sword on Sunday afternoon.
The Stags will aim to be the party poopers in the Second City, although it is hard to imagine anything other than a convincing victory for the hosts.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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