- Birmingham form: Birmingham City are in excellent form with eight wins and two draws from their last ten matches in all competitions
- Brentford form: Brentford have been more solid than spectacular in recent weeks, picking up three wins, five draws and two defeats from their last ten games
- Home stats: Birmingham's home matches across all competitions have averaged 3.00 goals for and 1.75 goals against this season
Blues could buzz the Bees
Momentum
Birmingham City have the momentum to send Brentford buzzing on Tuesday and a trip to St Andrew's Knighthead Park could be a wake-up call for Thomas Frank's men.
Tactics and recent results
- The Blues have made it 4-0-0 in all four of their home games this term, so they usually like to get the game going.
- Chris Davies has moulded this team into a narrow 4-4-2 side that presses and counters very well, especially in the transition phases.
- The Blues come into this clash on the back of a 0-0 draw with Sheffield United in the Championship, a 1-0 win at Swansea in the EFL Cup and a 2-2 draw with Barca, which they won on penalties in a friendly.
Brentford form
Brentford have been more steady than spectacular this season, going 1-2-2 from their five away games this year across all competitions. The Bees come into the matchup on a two-game win streak after a 4-2 away win at Rennes and 7-0 at home to Eintracht Frankfurt in friendlies.
Back Birmingham’s big goal average
Keith Andrews' men can change shape from a back three to a back four seamlessly with players that are alert and can transition between zones quickly. The Bees will be able to mix it up with Birmingham in an open cup tie and punish the hosts when they have space to exploit.
The Bees are the slight favorites here at 1.89, but Birmingham's recent form and home stats will probably ensure this becomes a proper cup tie with Birmingham at 3.75 and the draw at 3.6 not worth the risk.
Both teams to score (1.6) and over 2.5 goals (1.67) are the best plays on this one, which should be an open encounter given Birmingham's average of three goals per game at home. The Bees average 1.20 away goals across all competitions, so they will have to take their chances when they get them and are unlikely to need a shootout to win.
