Swansea v Birmingham

Swansea vs Birmingham Preview

Swansea City could have been forgiven for wishing last season didn't end when it did as the Welsh club were building up quite a head of steam in the season run-in which they'll be hoping to pick up once again in this season opener with Birmingham City on home soil on Saturday afternoon.

Following a dismal six-match winless run in the Championship from mid-February through to mid-March which also included no fewer than five defeats as well within this period, Swansea City produced something of a staggering comeback by putting together a solid and impressive nine-match unbeaten run in the English second tier.

This morale-boosting sequence of results not only included seven victories but also helped lift Swansea City out of 17th place in the Championship and into a far more respectable looking 10th place in the standings.

Four of these seven wins for The Swans were recorded on home soil with victories gained over Bristol City, Huddersfield Town, Preston NE and West Brom which also saw Swansea score a total of 10 goals in the process.

Birmingham City also enjoyed a much more stable campaign last season compared to previous seasons in the Championship as The Blues finished in 17th place and nine points clear of the relegation zone under manager, John Eustace.

However, Birmingham ended last season's campaign in disappointing fashion as the west midlands club managed to collect just the one victory from their final seven games of the season which came in the form of an unexpected 1-0 win away from home at Millwall but having also lost four of their last five games overall, Birmingham will want to make a positive start to this season on Saturday.

American businessman, Tom Wagner, has acquired a 43% share of Birmingham City and an injection of transfer funds has been made available to Eustace which includes the arrival of new signings such as defenders Ethan Laird and Lee Buchanan along with forwards Anderson, Roberts and Miyoshi, although the latter three forwards have scored a measly combined total of 72 goals across 338 games overall.

Results away from home continued to be Birmingham's achilles heel though last season as The Blues managed to register just two wins out of their final nine outings on the road last term.

Swansea City v Birmingham City Verdict Birmingham City have held the upper hand in previous recent exchanges against Swansea City as the visitors are unbeaten in the last six meetings, picking up three wins and three draws during this period.

However, the tables look set to turn in Swansea's favour this Saturday especially if The Swans can replicate the sort of form they showed towards the end of last season here.

Therefore, our main bet will be Swansea City win @ 1.75

Other side bets worth considering:

Swansea City win & Under 2.5 goals @ 4.33

Correct score: Swansea City 2-0 @ 8.50