• Date: Wed 26 December 2007
  • Venue: St Andrews Stadium
  • Ref: Halsey, M
  • Attendance: 24,094
Birmingham City

Birmingham City

Forssell (45)

McSheffrey (90) P

3 - 0

Birmingham City vs Middlesbrough

Team Lineups

Birmingham City

Maik Taylor
Radhi Jaidi
Stephen Kelly
Liam Ridgewell
Franck Queudrue
Fabrice Muamba
Sebastian Larsson (Mehdi Nafti, 82)
Gary McSheffrey
Damien Johnson
Cameron Jerome
Mikael Forssell (Garry O'Connor, 77)

Middlesbrough

Mark Schwarzer
Jonathan Woodgate
Luke Young, L
David Wheater (Robert Huth, 46)
Emanuel Pogatetz
Fabio Rochemback
Julio Arca (Adam Johnson, A, 70)
George Boateng
Stewart Downing
Sanli Tuncay
Jeremie Aliadiere (Dong-Gook Lee, 46)


Live Text Commentary
Full time
 

FULL TIME: The final goal was the icing on the cake for Birmingham but added insult to injury for Middlesbrough who have been left to rue missed chances.

90
Goal
 

GARY MCSHEFFREY takes the penalty himself and sends Mark Schwarzer the wrong way.

90

A pacey McSheffrey run down the left flank is too much for Huth who trips him inside the box, and Mark Halsey points to the spot.

90

The fourth official indicates three minutes of added time.

88

Birmingham will leapfrog Boro in the table if they see this game through, and it very much looks like they will as we approach the final minutes.

86

Huth is getting ambitious now and hits a shot from near the half-way line which is straight down the throat Taylor.

84

Southgate is fuming on the sideline as Birmingham take plenty of time over every dead ball situation, but the referee ignores his protests.

82
Substitution
 

Larsson hobbles off the field with an injury and Medhi Nafti takes his place.

81

The ball drops to Dong-Gook Lee inside the box but he sends his shot wide of the target.

80

Rochemback finds Huth with a corner and is header is brilliantly tipped over the bar by Taylor.

79

Huth, for a defender, is getting lots of chances at the moment! His shot this time blocked by Ridgewell.

77

Goalscorer Mikael Forssell leaves the field for Garry O'Connor

77

Huth gets another shot away and this time forces a fine save out of Taylor who scrambles across goal to turn the ball around the post

75

A Rochemback corner is cleared as far as Huth whose volley from 25-yards whistles past the post.

72

Damien Johnson lets fly on the volley but Boateng gets in the way of the shot.

72

McSheffrey hits a thunderous free-kick from 20-yards but Huth throws himself in the way to take the ball away from goal

70
Substitution
 

Julio Arca makes way for Adam Johnson

70
Yellow Card
 

Jonathan Woodgate is booked for a nasty challenge on Jerome, who gets straight back to his feet with no complaints. Had he stayed down, the Boro skipper could potentially have been facing a more severe punishment.

67

Birmingham are in no hurry to let the game run and Ridgewell stays down for lengthy treatment after a knock.

65

Tuncay hits a magnificent shot from distance and it swerves in the air before Taylor tips it over the crossbar.

63

Alex McLeish looks calm and collected now, as he stands with his arms folded on the sideline. He will know that if the scoreline stays the same, it will be a big victory for his side with two points currently setting the sides apart.

61

Larsson finds space for a shot on the edge of the area and strikes the ball cleanly but his shot grazes the post.

59

Tuncay gets a half chance with an acrobatic volley and does well, but still fails to find the target.

57

It is the home side who are pressing forward at the moment and Boro will be disappointed that they could not have made more of an impact in the opening stages of the second period.

55

The home crowd have found their voices and are raising the roof inside St. Andrews

53

Boro clear a Birmingham free-kick but only as far as Ridgewell whose shot is struck wide of the mark.

52
Yellow Card
 

McSheffrey is booked for a rash challenge on Rochemback.

51

Arca lets fly from a long way out and sends the ball into the stand behind the goal.

50

McSheffrey forces a fine save out of Schwarzer though he didn't mean it, the effort meant as a cross.

48

Rochemback surges forward with the ball and hits a left-footed shot which deflects off Ridgewell

45
Substitution
 

Jeremie Aliadiere is also forced off, and Dong-Gook Lee takes his place

45
Substitution
 

Gareth Southgate had a few injury problems at half-time. David Wheater is replaced by Robert Huth

Second half
 

Mark Halsey gets the second half underway

Half time
 

HALF TIME: There has been plenty of decent approach play from the visitors but they have failed to make it count, and two set-pieces have proved costly.

44
Goal
 

Jerome's header from Larsson's corner finds MIKAEL FORSSELL at the far post, and the striker eases the ball into the back of the net.

44

Ridgewell looks to pounce on McSheffrey's cross but Wheater puts in a vital interception to steer the ball away.

42

Mikael Forssell twists and turns inside the box before releasing a shot which strikes the post and bounces wide.

40

Fabio Rochemback picks out Tuncay Sanli from a free-kick but the striker's header lacks the power to trouble Taylor.

39

Play stops for a few minutes as Pogatetz receives treatment.

36

Aliadiere is picked out but the striker misses the target with a long range shot.

34

Muamba hits an ambitious effort from 35-yards and unsurprisingly fails to work the keeper.

32

Gareth Southgate shuffles some of the players' positions around on the pitch in an attempt to secure the centre of the park.

30

The visitors are still seeing much more of the ball but are struggling to find enough momentum to break down Birmingham.

29

Downing hits a powerful shot from way out and forces a fine save out of Taylor.

29

Muamba lets fly from outside the box but fails to trouble Schwarzer

28

The ball falls to David Wheater on the edge of the box and he strikes his shot straight down the throat of Taylor.

28

Aliadiere looks lively today and he smashes a shot goal-wards from 20-yards, but Radhi Jaidi throws himself in the way

26

Jerome gets his head to a cross but directs it straight at Schwarzer

23

The goal came out of nothing and slightly against the run of play, but Middlesbrough have to show the grit and determination that West Ham showed against them last week if they are to get back into the game.

21
Own Goal
 

STEWART DOWNING swings a leg at Gary McSheffrey's free-kick and slices the ball into his own net.

20
Yellow Card
 

Julio Arca trips Cameron Jerome and picks up the first booking of the game.

19

Muamba looks like he might latch onto a long pass which would leave him one-on-one with the Mark Schwarzer, but the keeper beats him to the ball.

16

Sebastian Larsson takes Birmingham's first corner of the game but it is headed clear at the near post by Jonathan Woodgate

14

Downing tries his luck from distance but fails to trouble the keeper.

12

Emanuel Pogatetz is pulled up for a handball but is not cautioned

11

Downing is seeing a lot of the ball and looks to be getting a lot of joy down the left flank.

9

The visitors are seeing more of the ball in the opening stages and Alex McLeish is barking orders out to his team on the touchline.

7

Stewart Downing gets to the byline and cuts back a cross into the path of Aliadiere whose left-footed shot curls into the arms of Taylor.

5

Jeremie Aliadiere gets a shot away from outside the box but it is straight at Maik Taylor

2

Fabrice Muamba hits a long range effort but makes a mess of it and sends it out for a throw-in!

Kickoff
 

Referee Mark Halsey gets the game underway

Awaiting Kickoff
 

BIRMINGHAM STARTING XI: Maik Taylor, Kelly, Jaidi, Ridgewell, Queudrue, McSheffrey, Muamba, Johnson, Larsson, Jerome, Forssell. SUBS: Doyle, O'Connor, Nafti, Djourou, De Ridder

Awaiting Kickoff
 

MIDDLESBROUGH STARTING XI: Schwarzer, Young, Wheater, Woodgate, Pogatetz, Boateng, Rochemback, Arca, Downing, Sanli, Aliadiere. SUBS: Turnbull, Huth, Shawky, Lee, Johnson