After a goalless draw in the opening game against Cardiff City at St. Andrews, Blues face a potential banana skin on Tuesday evening as they entertain Oxford United in the EFL Cup first round.
The game represents a good opportunity for Gary Rowett to experiment with the squad. Robert Tesche is expected to start and I wouldn`t be surprised to see youngsters Viv Solomon-Otabor, Josh Cogley and Jack Storer given the nod. Regretfully, Reece Brown may not feature due to an injury.
While Blues cannot take Oxford for granted, a game against lower league opposition is always a great way to try something different. Clayton Donaldson was his usual hard-working self on Saturday and would probably be best left saving himself for Leeds United.
But one thing I wouldn`t change is the central defensive partnership. Michael Morrison and Ryan Shotton`s partnership needs time to blossom and ripping that apart so early in the season would take away any momentum gained from their opening day clean sheet. Of course, by doing that, you do run the risk of them picking up and injury, but that is the risk you take every single time you step out on to the pitch.
Oxford will be a tough nut to crack and they have some very good attacking players. There is always an upset in the early stages of a cup competition and Blues must make sure it isn`t them tomorrow.
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