Packing a punch | Birmingham hope to revive
defensive form of last term
TEAM NEWS
Birmingham
New signing Alexander
Hleb was ruled out of the game with a leg injury and then ruled
back in by manager Alex McLeish, but is unlikely to do any better
than a place on the bench. The match also probably comes too soon
for Kevin Phillips, who is also making his way back after a
lay-off.
The club's other deadline day signings, Martin Jiranek and Jean
Beausejour, should be available to make their debuts.
Possible Starting XI: Foster; Carr, Dann, Johnson,
Ridgewell; Larsson, Gardner, Ferguson, McFadden; Jerome,
Zigic.
Liverpool
Dirk Kuyt will
miss the game due to the freak shoulder injury he sustained while
on international duty with the Netherlands, but new signings Raul
Meireles and Paul Konchesky could both make their club bows.
Joe Cole sits out the last game of his three-match suspension,
while David Ngog is a doubt after his withdrawal from France's
Under-21 game in midweek, which might give Ryan Babel a chance to
stake another claim for regular first-team inclusion.
Possible Starting XI: Reina; Johnson, Carragher, Skrtel,
Konchesky; Poulsen, Lucas; Babel, Gerrard, Jovanovic;
Torres.
