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Birmingham City strengthened their grip on automatic promotion and the League One title following a 2-1 win against Bristol Rovers on Tuesday night at the Memorial Stadium.
The visitors started the game at the top of the League One table, nine points clear of second-placed Wrexham with two games in hand, but were frustrated on the night by the Gas for the large majority of the game.
| Position | Team | Played | W | D | L | For | Against | GD | Points |
| 1 | Birmingham City | 38 | 27 | 8 | 3 | 65 | 26 | 39 | 89 |
| 2 | Wrexham | 40 | 23 | 9 | 8 | 56 | 32 | 24 | 78 |
| 3 | Wycombe Wanderers | 39 | 21 | 12 | 6 | 65 | 36 | 29 | 75 |
| 4 | Charlton Athletic | 40 | 21 | 9 | 10 | 55 | 36 | 19 | 72 |
| 5 | Stockport County | 40 | 20 | 11 | 9 | 58 | 36 | 22 | 71 |
Three defeats in a row has seen concern creep back in amongst Bristol Rovers supporters, particularly after losing to relegation rivals Crawley Town and Mansfield Town recently, but they were much improved here against the league-leaders.
They have been impressive in front of their own fans this season, picking up 31 points from 19 matches prior to kick-off, which is vital due to the fact they have the second-worst away record in the division but wasn’t enough against Birmingham.
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Keshi Anderson shines in Birmingham City win
Only an incredible collapse at this late stage would prevent promotion, but they were disappointing by their usual standards away to Bristol Rovers. Here, we outline the match ratings from a display which saw them win it late in front of the Sky cameras.
Ryan Allsop – 5
His mistake almost cost a second when Gatlin O’Donkor hit the crossbar. It wasn’t a comfortable showing from Ryan Allsop.
Ethan Laird – 6
He was caused plenty of problems down Bristol Rovers’ left-hand side. It’s fair to say Ethan Laird has had easier games this season in a Blues shirt.
Christoph Klarer – 6
Although he had some classy moments in possession, the Austrian struggled to deal with O’Donkor’s size and physicality.
Ben Davies – 5
Much like his centre-back partner, Ben Davies couldn’t get to grips with the striker. He was more than just roughed up at the Memorial and his yellow card showcased his struggles.
Alex Cochrane – 6
More solid than many of his defensive teammates, but Alex Cochrane rarely forayed forwards as often as he and Blues would’ve liked.
Tomoki Iwata – 5
The Japanese midfielder had less time on the ball than what he is used to. His attacking output was also lacking in conviction once he got to the final third, though the second 45 was better than the first.
Marc Leonard – 5
Much like his midfield partner, Marc Leonard couldn’t impose himself on the game in possession. However, his set-piece threat posed some problems before he was hooked off.
Kieran Dowell – 5
An assist papers over the cracks of a fairly quiet display down the right flank. The playmaker has had better days than this recently.
Willum Willumson – 6
The giant attacking midfielder is often the spark and inspiration but he was not knitting play together as much as he would’ve liked. The Gas’ press caused some problems for the midfield trio.
Keshi Anderson – 8
A well-taken goal will be the main talking point but the wide man was a constant thorn in the side of Bristol Rovers. His dribbling and directness posed the most problems and created the most chances.
Jay Stansfield – 6
It’s clear Jay Stansfield is struggling more than he was earlier in the season, even if his running and relentlessness were important elements of the display, he was not involved enough in meaningful attacks, but he both won and scored the penalty calmly.
Subs: Seong-ho Paik – 6, Alfie May – N/A, Alfons Sampsted – N/A, Grant Hanley – N/A.
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A performance of champions from Birmingham City
It’s evident that Birmingham are going up at this stage, and winning when not at your best is the type of performance needed at this stage of the season to get over the line.
As far as wins go, this may well be their worst display of the season. Blues have performed much more comfortably than this, which they can take comfort from. 0.28 open play xG and seven shots is well below their standards.
Pushed to the limit by Bristol Rovers, Blues know they can very much have the champagne on ice and think to next season. Tom Brady’s investment looks set to continue in 2025, as we exclusively revealed their summer plans recently.
The main other concern is regarding the Vertu Trophy final against Peterborough United in a couple of weeks before attention turns to the Championship.