West Brom v Birmingham betting tips: Baggies can go top with win

Preview and odds for Friday’s Championship clash

West Brom have the chance to go top of the Championship in a midlands derby on Friday night and we look at the odds for some West Brom v Birmingham betting tips.

Having been relegated last season, the Baggies have made a fine start to their campaign and have lost just once, while Birmingham have won three of their 11 games and are 10 points behind second-placed Albion.

Friday’s match, which takes place at The Hawthorns, is live on Sky Sports and kicks off at 7.45pm.

West Brom v Birmingham match odds

West Brom manager Valerien Ismael probably could not believe his luck when he was offered the job after Sam Allardyce refused to stay on at The Hawthorns following relegation from the Premier League last season.

He was left with a top-quality squad who are among the favourites to win the Championship at 9/4, and he has seen his side lose just once, at Stoke.

He is blessed with a forward line that is interchangeable to suit their opponents, being able to pick from Callum Robinson (pictured above), Jordan Hugill, Matt Phillips, Karlan Grant and Grady Diangana.

West Brom’s adaptability and their ability to press the opposition has been one of the pillars of their early-season success and the Baggies are 4/7 to beat Birmingham in the West Brom v Birmingham betting tips.

The Baggies lost their unbeaten record in tame fashion and were out-played by Stoke, but playing the same players as had featured three days earlier went against them as the team looked jaded.

Birmingham have slumped of late and their 3-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest ahead of the international break certainly did not sit well with boss Lee Bowyer, who savaged his side’s ability to defend and accused some players of complacency.

"It's a disappointing result. It is just not going in for us at the moment."

The Boss on #BIRFOR. 💬

— Birmingham City FC (@BCFC) October 2, 2021

Blues are 16th in the table with 12 points from 11 games and have failed to score in their last four Championship outings. It is 33/20 that West Brom win to nil.

Birmingham are 19/4 to win at The Hawthorns, while the draw is available at odds of 29/10. Albion have drawn three of their last six Championship games.

West Brom v Birmingham head-to-head

West Brom are unbeaten against Birmingham in the last eight meetings (W5 D3). They won 3-2 at St Andrew’s in December 2019 before being held to a 0-0 draw at home in the reverse fixture in June 2020.

Nine of the last 11 meetings saw both sides find the net, and it is 5/6 that this is the case again in the West Brom v Birmingham betting tips.

Birmingham have not won at The Hawthorns since August 2005 and have only won two of their last 10 visits since the start of the decade.

Five of the last seven meetings saw three goals or more scored in total and it is 4/5 that we see three or more goals on Friday night.

West Brom v Birmingham key battles

If West Brom do have a weakness, it has been their opponents’ ability to target the space in behind their wing-backs but with Scott Hogan struggling to hold the ball up effectively, Chuks Aneke failing to make much of an impact and Troy Deeney not yet up to speed, Birmingham may struggle to take advantage. They are 13/10 to either win or draw the game on the Double Chance market,

Plus, they have to find a way past England goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, who is on West Ham’s radar.

The stopper is out of contract next summer and will be available on a free transfer if he fails to sign a new deal with the Baggies. West Brom are 5/4 to keep a clean sheet.

View the latest Championship odds

All odds and markets correct as of date of publication