Chelsea v Birmingham City – Preview, Prediction, TV Listings, Betting Odds – FA Cup – 18 February 2012
Chelsea look to book their spot in the quarterfinals (sixth round) with a fifth round match against Championship side Birmingham City. The match will take place at Stamford Bridge in London, England on Saturday, February 18, 2012. Kickoff is scheduled for 07:30 EST (USA Eastern), 13:30 GMT (UK time), and 14:30 CET (Central Europe).
Chelsea v Birmingham City TV Listings
The match will be televised on Fox Soccer Plus (USA), Rogers Sportsnet World (Canada), ESPN (UK), Sky Sport (Italy), Channel 4 (France), Digi Sport (Hungary/Romania), C+ (Spain), Sport TV1 (Portugal), SuperSport (Africa), TV10 (Sweden), Viasat (Norway), Sport 1 (Israel/Russia/Germnay), NTV (Russia), Al Jazeera Sport (Middle East).
Chelsea v Birmingham City Preview
Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas
‘Now we need results to put ourselves back on track, these are two competitions we have in our targets and we will see what level we are at.’
‘In the league we have not been up to the level we are used to in the past. It’s a bit like last year but last year we put a run together to finish second. Our full focus now is on these two competitions, then we will try to get our league form together.’
‘It’s something that I’ve used in the past [meetings], it’s part of my leadership role to involve a full, honest relationship,’ he admitted. ‘It helps because it shows there is a two way leadership process going on, between players and leader.
‘Goodison Park hasn’t brought us good memories in recent years, we won in the Carling Cup with a massive display, but it’s a pity our performance last week couldn’t match that one as it would have been a different story, but for sure it was a major disappointment.
‘Players compete for their place and for their future, if you want to be the future of the team you fight to win against your colleague. You have to perform to reap the rewards; rewards in terms of results and also future continuity. The results are not good enough and you have to find out why, we set out with this team to win four competitions believing in this team.’
‘At this club we are given full conditions to succeed, in terms of talent and facilities, they pay us well and they don’t pay us to be failures, they demand that we are successful and we understand that.
‘Supporters are the essence of football, if they demand you have to respond, so we are perfectly in tune to their demands. Having an off-day happens to everybody, I don’t think our season should be defined by the performance at Everton, but we are much better than that and we can play much better, and that’s what we want to prove.
Birmingham manager Chris Hughton
“This will be a massive test but whichever way it goes, it is certainly one we will enjoy.
“The plus for us is no-one expects us to win, they are the class Premier League side and we are a team doing very well in the Championship.
“It is important we go there and give a good account of ourselves but the pressure is certainly on Chelsea to win the game and hopefully we can go there and give a good account.
“We have approached it no differently. We had another mid-week game which is par for the course in this division.
“Our weeks in the last few months have been made up of rest and recovery after mid-week games and preparation for the next game.
“It is a very welcome distraction away from the league campaign and one that has filled us with excitement, going to Chelsea with the quality they have and the stadium.
“We have 3,000 supporters going and they have been wonderful on the road for us this season and it is one to really look forward to.
“Our European cup performances were full of endeavour and enthusiasm and we will certainly need all of that to give ourselves any chance on Saturday.”
“We couldn’t be working any harder than what we are but when you are looking to bring in loans you are reliant on other clubs releasing players or looking for opportunities for them to get games.
“The search continues and it has been difficult but I’m in the same position as a lot of managers. We will keep striving to do something about that.
“But what I’m really delighted with is the group of lads here and what they have given me – and they couldn’t be giving me anymore than what they are.
“If I could guarantee the 18 players I had in the squad would all be fit through to the end of the season then of course I wouldn’t be happier. But the law of averages says we are going to miss players and we are going to pick up injuries. And I have to protect the squad as well.
“On any player I’m able to bring in I think the squad appreciate that we need to look after our best interests in the eventuality of any injuries.”
Team FA Cup Stats
| Chelsea | Birmingham | |
|---|---|---|
| Goals | Ramires 2 | Wade Elliott 2 |
| Assists | ||
| Yellows | Florent Malouda 1 | Wade Elliott 1 |
Chelsea v Birmingham City Prediction
Chelsea wins 2-0
Chelsea v Birmingham City Betting Odds
Chelsea win – 2/7
Draw – 9/2
Birmingham win – 17/2
