The fixture list continues to haunt David Wagner, who will now face his second promotion contender in two games when Huddersfield Town travel to Birmingham on Saturday.
Still chasing the first points of his time with the Terriers, the boss must plot a way past the Blues, currently sixth in the Championship table after 18 games.
One thing Wagner can be certain of ahead of kick off is a high level of possession. After reducing Middlesbrough to under 30% last weekend due to the new high pressing, attractive style. Huddersfield will be aiming to replicate that success against a team that have enjoyed an average of only 42% possession so far this term.
Part of the reason for such a low figure is the side’s propensity for long balls - accounting for nearly one in five of Birmingham’s passes - which should ensure a busy day in the air for whoever wins a starting berth in the centre of defence.
Ben Chilwell collected the second highest rating from Examiner readers on his professional league debut last weekend, and Town fans will be hoping for more of the same should Wagner turn to the youngster at St Andrew’s, with 43% of Birmingham attacks coming down their right side compared with 32% down the left.
Statistically, Saturday’s opponents also like to cross the ball - but the good news for Town is they don’t often find their target. Only 15.5% of Birmingham’s crosses successfully find a teammate compared with 19% for the Terriers so far this term.
Converting possession into chances and goals was the issue for Town last weekend and there is hope in that area. Birmingham have a far poorer defensive record than Middlesbrough, conceding an average of over a goal per game, and managing five clean sheets to Boro’s nine in 2015/16.
On the other hand, Birmingham have struggled at creating chances for themselves - they’ve taken 170 shots in total, which averages at 9.4 a game.
The Blues signed James Vaughan on loan from the Terriers last week as cover for their injured top scorer, Clayton Donaldson, who is likely to be missing until the New Year.
With the terms of the deal preventing Vaughan from taking the field this weekend, City’s attacking options could be stunted - although it will be crucial to put the shackles on Arsenal youngster Jon-Miquel Toral and Birmingham’s own hot prospect, Demarai Gray.
In their last five games, Gary Rowett’s men have failed to find the net in three of them - Toral scoring the consolation in a 2-1 defeat to Brighton last time out.
The Blues did put five past Fulham at the start of last month but it’s very much the outlying figure. It’s the only time they’ve scored more than two in a game since early September against Bristol City.
While Wagner will no doubt have a close eye on the passing stats, it won’t have escaped his notice that Birmingham’s record from set pieces isn’t good in either penalty area. Weak when defending their own box, they have been poor in converting their own free kicks - their only goals from dead ball situations have come from the penalty spot.
Bearing in mind Town’s own struggles in front of goal and the increasing clamour for a striker in the January window, it all adds up to an intriguing battle of the back lines when the two sides kick off at St Andrew’s.
Wagner will be hoping his own defensive stalwarts are the ones celebrating come full time.
