Birmingham City 1 v Blackburn Rovers 0 - EFL Championship

Tuesday 22nd October 2019
SkyBet EFL Championship
at St. Andrew's Stadium
Birmingham City (1) 1
Maxime Colin 31
Blackburn Rovers (0) 0
Attendance: 18,561 inc. 679 away fans

Birmingham City:
Camp, Colin, Dean, Roberts, Pedersen; Villalba, Bellingham (McEachran 62), Davis, Crowley (Maghoma 73), Mrabti (Gimenez 79), Jutkiewicz.
Subs (not used): Harding, Clarke-Salter, Bailey, Stockdale.
Blackburn Rovers:
Walton, Nyambe, Adarabioyo, Williams; Bennett, Travis, Johnson (Rothwell 62), Downing (Buckley 76); Dack, Armstrong; Gallagher (Graham 62).
Subs (not used): Bell, Evans, Rankin-Costello, Leutwiler.

Maxime Colin's headed goal by the right hand post, in the thirty first minute, from Dan Crowley's measured delivery cross, following a sublime passage of play in the build up, between Kerim Mrabti, Fran Villalba and the Blues number seven, to unlock Rovers defence, proved to enough to claim all three points.
Blues did create numerous other chances, but failed to add to their slender lead.
Should that be a worry for Pep Clotet? Very much so I think. Because while their is still only one goal in it, there is always the risk that the opposition could steal a draw, as almost happened in Blues last home game against Middlesbrough, when they needed a last minute Odin Bailey goal to restore their lead in dramatic fashion, after Boro had scored a late goal to almost salvage a draw.
Fran Villalba (twice) and Jude Bellingham both tested Christian Walton in the visitors goal tonight, while Lukas Jutkiewicz was unlucky to see his thirty yard pile-driver crash down off of the underside of the crossbar.

The eye-catching geometry of some of tonight's movement by the host side, both on and off the ball against Tony Mowbray's Rovers, was a joy to watch... but the high-tempo passing drills, as desirable as they are, need to be combined with a more ruthless edge around the oppositions goal.
The home side were the better team on the night, particularly in the first half and deserved the result, even though Blackburn did finally turn up late in the game and came close to forcing an equaliser, with Danny Graham shooting wide, before Lee Camp pulled off a great save to turn Elliott Bennett's deflected effort over the bar.
FT: Birmingham City 1 v Blackburn Rovers 0

The win nudged Blues one place up the table to eleventh, three points away from the play off berths and four above Blackburn, who remain in fourteenth.
Birmingham are at home again on Saturday, when they entertain Luton Town, while Blackburn face Garry Monk's Sheffield Wednesday at Ewood Park.