Everton 1-1 Birmingham City

Midfielder Sebastian Larsson's first-half strike ensured Birmingham City's unbeaten run was extended to eight games in a backs-to-the-wall 1-1 draw with Everton.

Alex McLeish's troops looked to be heading to defeat after the home side were rewarded for a flying start by Russian Diniyar Bilyaletdinov's early strike. However, the Blues weathered a first-half onslaught at Goodison Park equalising through Larsson in the 22nd minute, before battling treacherous weather conditions to hold on after the break.

Birmingham had barely settled before finding themselves one down in the fifth minute when midfielder Bilyaletdinov fired home following striker Louis Saha's flick on.

Saha thought he had gone from provider to scorer moments later lashing home after being put through by Tim Cahill - however the former Manchester United frontman was deemed to be offside. Everton were threatening to run riot at Goodison Park and former Millwall midfielder Cahill had a glorious chance in the 11th minute but his first-time shot sailed narrowly over.

Disaster struck for the Toffees after 22 minutes when completely against the run of play Ecuadorian Christian Benitez found space in the hosts box and picked out Larsson, who calmly slotted home.

Birmingham gradually started to grab a foothold on the game at, but still the Toffees looked more dangerous after the interval, with Cahill twice going close as the rain poured.

Firstly the Australia international was denied at the near post by Birmingham's Roger Johnson following Leighton Baines' teasing cross.

Then, after Baines and Marouane Fellaini combined to set up Cahill, again his neat flick was cleared away by the ever-present Johnson at the back.

Nothing would fall for Everton and after Birmingham stuck all eleven men behind the ball Saha volleyed wide and headed a free-kick over.

The Toffees were given four minutes of added time to find the net, but failed to do so as the visitors got the point their resolute display deserved.

Everton Vs Birmingham City Tickets Sunday December 20, 2009

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Blues boss set to pick same XI

Veteran midfielder Lee Carsley reported to training with a stiff back on Sunday but it is not expected to keep him out of contention against Sam Allardyce's team.
McLeish is again likely to field an unchanged line-up as City look to extend an unbeaten run of seven matches from which they have collected 17 points.
David Murphy, Garry O'Connor, Martin Taylor and Teemu Tainio remain long-term injury absentees.
The match kicks off at 8pm.
Birmingham (from): Hart, Carr, Johnson, Dann, Ridgewell, Larsson, Ferguson, Bowyer, McFadden, Jerome, Benitez, Maik Taylor, Phillips, Fahey, McSheffrey, O'Shea, Carsley, Vignal.

Phillips ready for Blues return

The veteran striker has been sidelined for the past fortnight and will provide back-up for first-choice strikers Cameron Jerome and Christian Benitez.
However, fellow forward Garry O'Connor and on-loan Sunderland midfielder Teemu Tainio remain long-term absentees after hip and knee operations respectively.
Other than that, Blues manager Alex McLeish has no fresh injury problems as his side look to extend their unbeaten run to seven matches.
Blues (from): Hart, Maik Taylor, Carr, Johnson, Dann, Ridgewell, Larsson, Ferguson, Bowyer, McFadden, Jerome, Benitez, Fahey, McSheffrey, Queudrue, O'Shea, Carsley, Vignal, Phillips.

McLeish praises Blues squad

Birmingham City boss Alex McLeish was delighted after seeing his side win 3-2 at Wigan Athletic to move into the top half of the Premier League table.

The Blues roared back from a goal down to take the points at the DW Stadium thanks to two goals from Sebastian Larsson and one from Christian Benitez.

Afterwards, McLeish commented: "We're showing we belong in Premier League.

"When I was grumpy earlier in the season about losing points from certain games, I felt then we didn't look out of place.

"Now we are getting our rewards for those early performances and missed points, although we've had to learn the hard way in certain cases.

"But we know nothing has been achieved yet. I've been in the game too long for that.

"However, this should give the players massive confidence and they are entitled to feel confident because they've earned it.

"Since the start of the season they have been resilient, bounced back from setbacks in any given game and they've got their rewards."

McGeady interested in England

Celtic star Aiden McGeady has admitted he is flattered to be linked with a move to the Premier League.

The 23-year-old Republic of Ireland international has been mentioned as a possible transfer target for Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa.

But despite claiming he is now happy at Celtic Park, the winger has admitted he would like to play in the English top-flight.

"I'm 23 and every player has aspirations to play at the top level and I won't deny that I feel that way too," McGeady told the Daily Record.

"But things are starting to go a bit better here than they were before. I'm happy at Celtic.

"There was a point a few months back when I probably wasn't, but I'm starting to get back to enjoying it the way I did before. That's down to the change of style in the football we're being asked to play.

"If a team comes in with a bid then I'm still under contract until 2013.

"Like I say, though, everyone wants to play in England or abroad. I won't deny I have those ambitions.

"However, it's not up to me whether or not I go at the moment.

"Of course, I'm aware of the transfer talk when people are talking about me and I'm very flattered by it but I don't take too much notice.

"If a bid comes in and the club accepts it then that is not down to me."

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Wigan Athletic Vs Birmingham City
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Blues win delights McLeish

Birmingham City boss Alex McLeish hailed his side's character after they had secured their fourth Premier League victory of the campaign by beating Fulham 1-0 at St Andrew's.

Former Leeds United and West Ham midfielder Lee Bowyer scored the all-important goal in the 16th minute as the Blues moved four points clear of the bottom three and level with Roy Hodgson's Cottagers team.

McLeish said: "The goal was the one bit of class we produced in the game. It was trademark Lee Bowyer. It was a late run onto a great pass and the execution was world-class.

"When Lee first came here, I got some people raising their eyebrows saying his legs had gone and he wasn't the same player.

"But he's proved a lot of people wrong. He can run all day, has class about him, and is a real leader.

"Today was an indication of the type of player we've got here, people who are prepared to put themselves on the line.

"On many occasions you see players turning their back on the ball, but the guys here throw everything into the challenge.

"We don't want to be defending desperately every week but it's comforting for me to see we've got players who can do that sort of thing. It's all part of the make up of a Premier League team."

Birmingham City vs Fulham.. Results 1-0

A clever goal from Lee Bowyer earned Birmingham victory over Fulham as Alex McLeish's men extended their unbeaten run to four matches.Bowyer latched on to James McFadden's lofted pass before cushioning the ball past Mark Schwarzer for his fourth goal of the season.
Fulham dominated the second half and almost levelled when Clint Dempsey's header was tipped over by Joe Hart.
But Birmingham held firm to inflict Fulham's first loss in six games.

Birmingham's boss said:
"I'm delighted because we played a tough game today.

"Sometimes it wasn't too pretty. We've played better than that and lost games but we showed we can win a match with strength and resilience.

"As long as they keep their feet on the ground and show the same level of resilience and application we can have a good season.

Blues meet police over accounts

The new owners of Birmingham City FC have contacted police over their concerns about possible irregularities in the Premier League club's accounts.

West Midlands Police said officers from its economic crime team met club bosses yesterday to discuss "a number of allegations put forward by the club".

It said officers were considering if there were grounds for an inquiry.

Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung took over the club last month from David and Ralph Gold and David Sullivan.

The previous owners were unavailable for comment.

West Midlands Police said in a statement: "Following the meeting, officers are now assessing a number of allegations that have been put forward by Birmingham City FC to try and determine whether there are any grounds for a formal police inquiry.

"The force would stress that at this early stage this is not a criminal investigation, merely a preliminary assessment of some information supplied by the club."

A Birmingham FC spokesman confirmed the club had met with police, adding: "As the matter is now in the hands of the police it is not suitable to comment further about this."

Blues to keep spending plans

Birmingham City's plans to invest heavily in January remain unaffected by a slew of unexpected bills, according to the club's new vice-chairman Peter Pannu..

New owner Carson Yeung is reported to have paid £6million in surprise bills, fees, bonuses and taxes following his £81million takeover of the club in October.

However, Pannu insists the Hong Kong businessman's grand pledge to make £40million available to manager Alex McLeish for new players in January remains unaffected.

"The transfer window commitments are still there," Pannu told the Birmingham Mail. "This saga will have no effect on the commitments, which are ongoing.

"Although there are extra burdens on Carson, they do not at all frustrate what we plan to do in January. He made a pledge to supporters and we will honour that."

Doubts about Yeung's intention to make the funds available were recently expressed by former co-owner David Sullivan.

"Carson doesn't want to engage in a war of words," added Pannu. "As for the rest, the post-acquisition due diligence will continue by our experts - and time will tell.

"You can't say we're naive in these matters."

Blues boss keeping Doyle as cover

Doyle had been keen to quit Birmingham on a temporary basis in a bid to play first-team football but has seen previous requests rebuffed by McLeish.
And it looks as though the 24-year-old Irishman will have to settle for a peripheral role in the Midlands for the foreseeable future, as McLeish is keen to have three goalkeepers at his disposal.
Joe Hart and Maik Taylor currently stand between him and Birmingham's first XI but while the likes of Ipswich, Motherwell and Dundee United have expressed interest in the past, it appears he is going nowhere.
"He (Doyle) is our third-choice goalkeeper, he's cover," McLeish told the Birmingham Mail.
"We need to have three good goalkeepers, Doyley's had a fair bit of experience without being given the total amount of experience of the other two. But he's still had a fair amount of experience so we know that we've got a terrific third goalie there.
"It must be frustrating for him but he's a great type, he trains hard with (goalkeeping coach) Dave Watson and he knows that happens in football sometimes.
"You might not be first choice but you're part of the squad and you're getting paid good wages, then you have to give it as much as you can professionally."

Major O'Connor blow for Blues

Birmingham City striker Garry O'Connor is facing around four months on the sidelines due to an ongoing groin problem.

The 26-year-old Scotland international underwent surgery last season on a similar problem, but has continued to be troubled by the injury during the current campaign.

Blues manager Alex McLeish told the club's official website: "We think he's got to have an operation at some stage on his hip before he plays again.

"That is the kind of road we're going down, so it's another man down which isn't great in terms of our striking options.

"Garry's problem is related to what he had last year. He had an operation on part of the groin ligament in there because of wear of tear.

"I've not got the full technical details, but the wear and tear has caused a little bit of bone growth or something has calcified, so he'll have to get it shaved because it's affecting his mobility in that area.

"In all likelihood he has got to go for an operation and we could be talking three or four months."

Ngog would never take dive - Agent

The young Frenchman has found himself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons for his apparent dive in Liverpool's 2-2 draw with Birmingham City on Monday night.
Ngog was branded a cheat by Blues midfielder Lee Carsley for going down in the box without any contact from his challenge.
The 21-year-old has come under fire from a number of figures in the game, but Ngog's agent, Bruno Satin says the player is no cheat.
"He wouldn't try and con the ref," Satin told The Sun.
"He's a lad with very good education, correct and polite. He doesn't look for these things. He's never had a problem of this type before in his career.
"Maybe he fell down because he was worried about being injured. At times, players make very hard challenges in England. They allow a lot of things to defenders in the Premier League. At times it's really on the limit.
"Sometimes there are challenges that can assassinate you. A defender could get five matches for throwing his shirt and the player who broke the leg of Eduardo only had a three-game suspension.
"Did the defender put the safety of the player in danger? You have to look at things in a more reasonable proportion."
Meanwhile, Birmingham City defender Scott Dann has called on the FA to punish any divers.
Dann believes players who con referees need to be suspended and he admits Ngog's actions were hard to take.
"The only way you can stop it is to suspend cheats and it's up to the FA to sort it out," said Dann.
"We all know diving goes on but no one likes to see it. I'd never dive to win a penalty.
"David Ngog is not the only one who has ever done it. A lot of it goes on and it is disappointing. It is a tough one for us to get our heads around.
"People say they are not sure what can be done to stop it, but rules can be changed to clean up football - and people have to be punished heavily.
"Everyone who saw it knew it was a dive. I am just sick because I had family and friends there and wanted to put one over on Liverpool.
"But we can take some consolation in the fact that Ngog had to dive to stop us beating them."

Boss tells Blues to behave

Birmingham City manager Alex McLeish has warned his players to keep their discipline and avoid unnecessary suspensions.

McLeish was talking ahead of the home clash with Liverpool, which will be missed by midfielder Barry Ferguson due to his red card in the latter stages of the goalless draw with Manchester City.

McLeish told the club's official website: "Barry Ferguson being out with suspension will be a loss because of his ability to make us play, but we will try and patch things up.

"I remind the players every single game about discipline and the need to keep eleven men on the pitch and to try and limit the bookings, but it's a man's game with tackles.

"But it's the silly ones we need to cut out - like pulling the jersey over the head when you score a goal. I could see one or two of our forwards doing that right enough.

"We just have to watch the discipline because we're a small fragile squad and it will affect smaller squads, but by and large the discipline has been pretty good and it was just a rash moment for Barry and he admitted that."

Injured Celtic pair Brown and Maloney miss Scotlands trip to Wales

Injured Celtic midfielders Scott Brown and Shaun Maloney were today omitted from the Scotland squad for next Saturday's friendly in Wales.
Neither player travelled with their club to Hamburg for tonight's make-or-break Europa League clash, with Brown still troubled by an ankle problem and Maloney having suffered a heel injury.
Missing out: Scott Brown of Celtic is injured

Cardiff's Ross McCormack and Birmingham City's James McFadden have both been recalled after missing last month's friendly defeat in Japan through injury.
Fellow forward Kevin Kyle is also back in the squad after being unable to accept a late call-up for the Japan game due to a knee problem.

Chelsea flop Shevchenko free to join Yeung's Birmingham City revolutionCeltic keeper Boruc set for three-week spell on the sidelines after knee surgeryCELTIC FC

Taylor hoping to keep his place

Birmingham City goalkeeper Maik Taylor has set his sights on facing Liverpool at Anfield after keeping a clean sheet on his return to Premier League action.Taylor, 38, was recalled for Sunday's 0-0 home draw against Manchester City, to deputise for Alex McLeish's first- choice keeper, the ineligible Joe Hart.

Red-card record for Premier League

With Barry Ferguson also given his marching orders in Birmingham's draw with Manchester City on Sunday, the two-day total of nine was the highest for a decade.
Liverpool were the worst offenders, with Philipp Degen and Jamie Carragher both seeing red in their defeat at Fulham, while two other games also featured a pair of dismissals.
Everton's Diniyar Bilyaletdinov and Carlos Cuellar of Aston Villa received their marching orders within minutes of each other at the end of their 1-1 draw, with Sunderland's Kenwyne Jones and West Ham's Radoslav Kovac following suit at the Stadium of Light.
Geovanni's red card added to Hull's woes in their defeat at Burnley but Jlloyd Samuel can have no complaints about his dismissal for tripping Chelsea's Didier Drogba.

Results for Birmingham City Vs Manchester City Nov 01

Match Preview:

Alex McLeish's Birmingham City face a tough test in Sunday's only game against big summer spenders Manchester City at St. Andrew's.

The struggling Midlanders picked up an excellent 2-1 home win last weekend against former manager Steve Bruce's Sunderland that stopped a three match losing run in the league.

Liam Ridgewell and James McFadden cut the Black Cats down to size as they recorded their third win of the campaign to edge them away from the drop zone. They currently sit in 15th position.

City on the other hand loiter in the upper echelons of the Premier League table and although they sit sixth, they have a game in hand over Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur, the two teams directly above them.

Birmingham City's main struggle this season has been hitting the back of the net. Only eight goals have been plundered in their ten games and this will be an issue McLeish will want to address.

Mark Hughes has an embarrassment of riches to choose from although Brazilian sharp-shooter Robinho (ankle), Nedum Onuoha (thigh) and Benjani Mwaruwari (thigh) struggling to be fit in time for the clash.

McLeish has several injury concerns ahead of the clash.

Damien Johnson, Gregory Vignal and Marcus Bent (all hamstring), Martin Taylor (ankle), Giovanny Espinoza (foot), Keith Fahey (ankle) and David Murphy (knee) are all hampered and may not be available for the Blues.

With Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz, Carlos Tevez, Stephen Ireland, Gareth Barry and Joleon Lescott to name a few, the visitors should have enough in their ranks to overpower the recently promoted outfit.

They last met in the league during the 2007-08 season with Birmingham claiming a 3-1 success.

Former loan star Mauro Zarate fired the hosts into a two goal lead before a Elano penalty halved the deficit.

Both the teams played well but failed to put the match to an absolute decision.

The results for
Birmingham City Vs Manchester City are
0-0