Sheffield United vs Birmingham City - prediction, team news, lineups

Sheffield United and Birmingham City volition footwear disconnected their Championship campaigns connected Saturday evening, erstwhile they quadrate disconnected astatine Bramall Lane connected the opening weekend.

Both sides won EFL Cup first-round ties past play and volition anticipation to combat for Championship promotion this season, having finished conscionable 4 points isolated successful 14th and 10th spots respectively past clip around.

Match preview

Sheffield United volition footwear disconnected their 2026-27 Championship run connected Saturday aiming for a large betterment connected a pugnacious twelvemonth past clip around.

After lone being denied an contiguous instrumentality to the Premier League successful a playoff last decision successful 2024-25, the Blades underwent a summertime of change, replacing Chris Wilder lone to crook backmost to him successful September aft a dismal start, arsenic they yet limped to a 14th-placed decorativeness having spent overmuch of the run astatine the incorrect extremity of the division.

That word ended with a tally of 60 points from 46 outings, and with lone basement broadside Sheffield Wednesday suffering much losses, but the South Yorkshire side, connected the backmost of a final-day win, person acceptable their absorption connected 2026-27 and underwent a affirmative pre-season, drafting against Chesterfield and VfL Bochum alongside 4 wins.

Their competitory play past got underway successful an EFL Cup necktie distant astatine third-tier Mansfield Town past Sunday, and Wilder's men cruised done with a 3-0 triumph courtesy of Patrick Bamford's opener and second-half goals from Mark McGuinness and Callum O'Hare.

Now heading into a afloat play backmost nether Wilder with hopes of warring astatine the close extremity of the part and staking their assertion for a instrumentality to the apical flight, Sheffield United volition anticipation to footwear disconnected with a location triumph connected Saturday.

Their visitors, meanwhile, travel into a 2nd consecutive Championship play with the hopes of their ain sustained propulsion for promotion.

Birmingham City arrived backmost successful England's 2nd tier successful 2025-26 connected the backmost of a record-breaking League One season, winning the league with 111 points, and they had a creditable 2nd play nether Chris Davies, adapting seamlessly and finishing 10th connected 64 points from their 46 matches.

Ending 9 points abbreviated of the apical six, the Blues were possibly outgo an adjacent amended run and a accidental astatine back-to-back promotions done the playoffs, by a mediocre distant record, with lone 3 sides picking up less than the 20 points they managed connected the road.

On the backmost of a pre-season successful which they won each 5 games, Davies's men took a archetypal measurement towards putting that close successful past week's archetypal competitory outing erstwhile they visited Swansea City successful the EFL Cup archetypal round, progressing with a 1-0 triumph acknowledgment to August Priske's extremity connected the changeable of fractional time.

With assurance to instrumentality from that opening distant triumph implicit chap second-tier opposition, Birmingham City volition present bid to get up and moving with 3 points connected the roadworthy successful the Championship to acceptable the code for different promotion bid this term.

Sheffield United signifier (all competitions):

D W W W D W

Birmingham City signifier (all competitions):

W W W W W W

Team News

Sheffield United volition tract a akin starting XI to past week's cupful victory, with talismanic midfielder Gustavo Hamer having departed this week aft missing their competitory opener.

Kalvin Phillips has since returned to Bramall Lane connected indebtedness from Manchester City, but helium volition beryllium eased successful aft a semipermanent injury, with Joe Rothwell, Sydie Peck, Oliver Arblaster and Jairo Riedewald besides successful contention for midfield spots.

Tom Cannon, Patrick Bamford and Callum O'Hare volition each anticipation to proceed astatine the apical extremity of the pitch, portion Tahith Chong was forced disconnected successful the archetypal fractional against Mansfield and left-back Sam McCallum missed the travel meaning Harrison Burrows should commencement astatine the back.

Birmingham City are without Marc Leonard, who missed each of pre-season done injury, portion defenders Lee Buchanan and Ethan Laird person been dilatory eased backmost aft their ain issues.

Summer signing Luis Vazquez volition anticipation for a archetypal commencement successful attack, but August Priske whitethorn proceed up beforehand aft his extremity successful the cupful past clip retired alongside cardinal antheral Jay Stansfield, who has netted 41 league goals for the Blues successful the past 3 seasons.

Their astir important summertime concern was making the indebtedness of midfielder Jhon Solis permanent, and helium should again articulation Tomoki Iwata and Paik Seung-Ho successful the motor room.

Sheffield United imaginable starting lineup:

Cooper; Seriki, Tanganga, McGuinness, Burrows; Donovan, Peck, Rothwell, O'Hare; Bamford, Cannon

Birmingham City imaginable starting lineup:

Beadle; Osayi-Samuel, Klarer, Neumann, Cochrane; Iwata, Solis; Vicente, Paik, Stansfield; Priske

We say: Sheffield United 1-1 Birmingham City

Saturday's crippled is surely a pugnacious 1 to call, arsenic tin often beryllium the lawsuit with early-season games, fixed the 2 sides are comparatively evenly-matched.

Both with assurance from pre-season and cupful wins, but yet to beryllium afloat up to speed, we expect a stock of the spoils astatine Bramall Lane.

For information investigation of the astir apt results, scorelines and much for this lucifer delight click here.