Dominic Calvert-Lewin latest as seven players set miss out in Birmingham City vs Leeds United
Leeds United travel to face Birmingham City at St. Andrew’s, where a number of players could be absent for the FA Cup fourth-round tie.
The Whites haven’t won the FA Cup since 1971-92, when they beat Arsenal 1-0 in the final.
Leeds beat Derby County 3-1 in the third round of this year’s competition, although they’ll be in for a much tougher test against Chris Davies’ side, who are very impressive at home.
Daniel Farke has had to deal with a lot of injuries throughout the season, with Anton Stach and Pascal Struijk being the players who aren’t currently fit.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin missed Wednesday’s 2-2 draw with Chelsea due to illness, but it looks very likely that he’ll be well enough to play on Sunday.
Injury latest ahead of Birmingham vs Leeds
As Farke said after the result at Stamford Bridge, Leeds had three key players missing who are crucial to the spine of their team.
According to injury expert Ben Dinnery, Stach and Struijk both remain sidelined due to hip problems, and they’ll be unavailable at St. Andrew’s.
Both players could return in time for the Premier League meeting against Aston Villa on 21 February, which is brilliant news for the Elland Road outfit.
Calvert-Lewin was initially given a 75 per cent chance of playing, with it looking likely that he could return to the starting lineup.
However, Farke confirmed in his press conference on Friday that he is fit to take part in the match.
He said: “I don’t think Stach or Struijk will be involved in this game as they are still continuing their recovery with rehab.
“Calvert-Lewin is back after his illness, so some good news for him. We have no new injuries after the Chelsea game, and everyone should be available.”
| Leeds United’s injuries | Birmingham City’s injuries |
| Anton Stach (out) | Paik Seung-Ho (out) |
| Pascal Struijk (out) | Jack Robinson (out) |
| Alex Cochrane (out) | |
| Ethan Laird (out) | |
| Lee Buchanan (out) |
As for the hosts, Paik Seung-Ho, Jack Robinson, Alex Cochrane, Ethan Laird and Lee Buchanan are all out injured.
With the Blues lacking several defenders, this could be another match in which Lukas Nmecha steps up.
- Read more: How Luke Ayling masterminded wild Leeds win vs Birmingham in 5-4 madness under Marcelo Bielsa
Lukas Nmecha looks set to continue excellent run of form
While Calvert-Lewin may start up front, it’s very likely that he’ll be joined by Nmecha.
The 27-year-old scored a goal and assisted Noah Okafor’s strike against Chelsea, proving that it was an incredibly smart move to sign him on a free transfer in the summer.
The German has registered a goal contribution every 104.75 minutes across all competitions, which betters Calvert-Lewin’s ratio of one every 154.8 minutes.
Nmecha has only started seven Premier League games, which shows how impressive he has been when coming off the bench for the Whites.
Birmingham have four defenders out injured, and although they are a formidable opponent at home, Nmecha might be going into the match as the most confident player on the pitch.
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