"A midlands derby, east v west, and with there being no time like the present, and Stoke (!) running away with the Championship, this is a battle for the playoff. OK, it's after four games but both teams are in a hurry to the Premier League. Leicester, well, finances dictate they need to get back up. Birmingham, well, with Toms Wagner and Brady involved, are shooting for the moon, and rebuilding the Second City with it. Or something. There's high stakes"
"For Birmingham, Lewis Koumas, son of Jason, on loan from Liverpool, an EFL Cup winner in 2024, makes a debut. No Bilal El Khannouss for Leicester again amid transfer talk despite being declared available. Jeremy Monga, 16, drops to the bench for Stephy Mavidi but Louis Page, 17, make his first home start. Plenty of blooming youth around at the club of Jimmy Bloomfield, their legendary manager of the 1970s."
Jay Stansfield suffered a foot injury at Port Vale and will be sidelined for weeks, according to Chris Martin. Lewis Koumas, on loan from Liverpool and an EFL Cup winner in 2024, makes his Birmingham debut. Bilal El Khannouss remains absent from Leicester despite being declared available amid transfer speculation. Jeremy Monga, 16, drops to the bench while Louis Page, 17, makes his first home start, signaling significant youth involvement. Lineups list starters and substitutes for both teams and name referee Josh Smith (Lincolnshire). Chris Martin returns to Leicester where he once worked under Brendan Rodgers and Marti Cifuentes leads the team, with both clubs pushing urgently for promotion.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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