Three games into the season and one point apiece for us and the Blues. Naturally they are calling it a relegation six pointer and a 'must win' match.

Derby County vs Birmingham City
Pride Park Stadium; Sat Aug 25th 3.00pm

The reality is somewhat different. Defeat will not mean that the Rams or the Blues will be relegated but it would be a massive blow to the confidence of both teams.

Birmingham have started with narrow defeats against Chelsea and West Ham, and a draw with Sunderland. The West Ham game was won on a 70th minute penalty when Craig Bellamy was brought down by keeper Colin Doyle. Bruce felt the player made the most of the situation. He told the BBC; "Everybody in the ground knows that Bellamy played for the penalty. You could see it coming."

Bruce has been scathing of the refereeing in the Premiership. In the previous game he felt that Colin Doyle was impeded prior to Stern John's equalizer. "I am deeply frustrated because we were harshly treated [and] in the end that does cost you."

Like the Rams, Birmingham are linked with just about every player drawing breath. It's no secret that Bruce is looking for a striker and a midfielder. He bid for the Spurs forward Mido but could not match the Middlesbrough bid. The papers have linked the Blues with a move for Jan Koller from Monaco. Bruce has laughed off the link; "Am I close to signing Jan Koller? That's a load of rubbish. The first I knew of it was when I read about it."

Off the field, there is talk of a takeover at St. Andrews. Hong Kong tycoon, Carson Yeung has bought a 30% share in the club and has expressed an interest in taking control of the club "maybe". This is concerning current owner David Sullivan who believes a long drawn out takeover would be bad for the club. He told the official website that the club "really needs to know by September."

One of the reasons for the rush is that the Blues are considering a move to a new stadium. The club has raised an on-line petition to persuade the government to allow them to build a sports and football complex in the city.

Birmingham chief executive Karen Brady told the official website; "If given the go-ahead it would lead to the decontamination and regeneration of 55 acres of largely derelict former industrial land in one of the UK's most deprived inner city areas."

Current Birmingham squad
1 Keeper Maik Taylor
13 Keeper Colin Doyle
18 Keeper Richard Kingson
2 Defender Stephen Kelly
3 Defender Matthew Sadler
4 Defender Martin Taylor
5 Defender Rafael Schmitz (on loan from Lille OSC)
6 Defender Liam Ridgewell
15 Defender Franck Queudrue
16 Defender Johan Djourou (on loan from Arsenal)
21 Defender Stuart Parnaby
24 Defender Radhi Jaïdi
27 Defender Olivier Tébily
7 Midfielder Sebastian Larsson
12 Midfielder Mehdi Nafti
17 Midfielder Neil Danns
20 Midfielder Daniël de Ridder
22 Midfielder Damien Johnson (captain)
23 Midfielder Olivier Kapo
26 Midfielder Fabrice Muamba
8 Striker Garry O'Connor
9 Striker Mikael Forssell
10 Striker Cameron Jerome
11 Striker Gary McSheffrey
19 Striker Rowan Vine
25 Striker Sone Aluko

Last 5 games
Birmingham 2-0 Sheffield Wednesday
Preston 1-0 Birmingham
Chelsea 3-2 Birmingham
Birmingham 2-2 Sunderland
Birmingham 0-1 West Ham

Danger Men
Mikael Forssell is probably Birmingham's most dangerous player. He's scored once this season, however he had to be substituted in last week's game against West Ham. Steve Bruce is hopeful that his calf injury will clear up in time for him to face the Rams but he's looking doubtful. Olivier Kapo and Garry O'Connor scored Birmingham's other goals.

The mood on the message board
There's little activity on the new Blues message board and not much on the old Rivals site either. Most of the activity appears to be trolls from other Midlands teams attempting to get a rise. There's some talk about the Stern John goal and someone is taking the writer of the match report to task over his one-sidedness but that's about it.

The Rams
At the time of writing, we've signed winger Eddie Lewis from Leeds, Darius Vassell is considering a move and we're being linked with Jon Stead. Benny Feilhaber is also available for selection.

Whether all or any of these players will be selected is anybody's guess. Feilhaber sat on the bench for the Spurs drubbing and played for the USA in their 1-0 defeat by Sweden.

Billy Davies is aware the team lacks firepower. After last week's mauling he told the BBC; "We've got to add firepower, we've got to add to the squad and we know that. We'll do all we can to bring in fresh faces and you'll see the best from this team from September onwards, when we have our squad assembled."

Neither Vassell nor Stead are particularly prolific in front of goal. Vassell has scored 52 goals at Villa and Man City since turning professional in 1997. He is a full international however and has scored six goals for England. He's only aged 27 so he might fancy the chance of resurrecting his England career by helping Derby stay in the Premier League? As an added bonus, he could start against his old club Villa's arch-enemy.

All of Derby's international players returned uninjured from their respective trips. Rob Earnshaw played for 40 minutes as a lone striker in the Welsh victory over Bulgaria while Jay McEveley played a full 90 for Scotland. Stephen Pearson and Gary Teale were second half substitutes.

Davies is sweating on the fitness of Claude Davis and reports from the official site are hopeful. Definitely missing will be Tyrone Mears who strained a thigh at Spurs.

What the bookies think
William Hill think we can win this one. The Rams are at 13/10 while Birmingham are at 9/5. You can get 2/1 on a draw. Rob Earnshaw is the favourite to score the first goal at 6/1. You can get 20/1 on Matt Oakley to score, which are rather long odds for one of our leading scorers.

Mark Lawrenson thinks we'll win 2-1, though he "doesn't know where the goals are coming from."

Information for travelling fans
Drinking: There are very few pubs very close to the ground but if you come by train, the locale around the station is fairly inviting. The Crown and Cushion at the junction of London Rd always seems to be full of away supporters. The Brunswick is a must for any real ale fans and the Alexandra next door is my personal favourite. Fans tend to mingle in these pubs and as long as you're not being aggressive, the atmosphere is good. The Waterfall opposite the station is okay as well. If you are driving, the Navigation Pub on London Rd opposite the parking area is your best bet.

Driving: Birmingham to Derby 53 miles. You can come via the A38 or M42/M1. I'd go for the M42/M1 route as it brings you to the right part of Derby. Driving time should be an hour to an hour 30 depending on traffic. On arrival in Derby, follow the signs for away supporter parking to London Rd.

Parking: It used to be at the old Wilmorten College site however that is now a building site so away fans should park at Catalyst on London Rd opposite the Navigation pub. It's about 10-15 minutes from the ground. Don't be tempted to park at Pride Park shopping centre unless you fancy being clamped. You can also park for a £5 at the hospital further up London Rd near the hospital and the Railway station.

Mick's Prediction
It goes without saying that neither side will want to lose this and it could be a turgid and tedious game with both sides frightened of conceding a goal. What we need is to get back to the attacking flair we showed against Portsmouth. If we do that and have a bit of luck on our side, we could put our first tick in the win box.

Post your match prediction here!

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