|
|
 |
|
|
|
Match Report
Birmingham v Portsmouth 21 January 2006
Blues hammer sorry Pompey
Birmingham 5 - 0 Portsmouth
Birmingham leapfrogged Portsmouth at the foot of the table thanks to a 5-0 drubbing at St Andrews on Saturday afternoon.
Jiri Jarosik, Jermaine Pennant, Matthew Upson and David Dunn were all on target in an embarrassingly comfortable win, while Mikael Forssell registered his first league goal of the season with a late penalty.
Fulham target Matthew Taylor had an early chance for the visitors but his right-footed effort from the edge of the area was comfortably dealt with by Maik Taylor in the Birmingham goal.
A lively start by both sides was punctuated by Jarosik's fifth minute opener. Pennant slipped the ball to Mario Melchiot down the right flank giving the Frenchman the opportunity to make his way to the byline before lifting a dangerous cross into the Pompey six-yard box.
Emile Heskey rose to occupy goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown, allowing the on-loan Chelsea midfielder Jarosik to climb well before arrowing a powerful downward header into the vacant net for his fourth goal in a Blues shirt.
The home side certainly had the lion's share of possession during the opening 20 minutes but, despite demonstrating plenty of composure on the ball, they struggled to convert their dominance into openings.
A mistake by Dejan Stefanovic almost let Chris Sutton in to score on his home debut. The Serbian defender failed to cope with a long clearance, letting Heskey nip in behind him. The former England forward sprinted down the right wing before pulling the ball back to Sutton, who was waiting by the Pompey penalty spot.
But the experienced marksman was denied on this occasion by a fine save from Ashdown. Sutton pulled the trigger first time, giving the visiting shot-stopper the chance to demonstrate excellent agility as he flung himself to his left, pushing the ball wide.
Just after the half-hour mark Taylor got on the end of a great cross-field ball from Gary O'Neil before he flashed a volley wide, but in truth Portsmouth looked like a team bereft of self-belief as time and again they struggled to find any kind of cohesion in their forward movement.
When they did finally create an opening, it fell to Zimbabwean striker Benjani Mwaruwari. Melchiot failed to win a header in the Birmingham box, and Taylor pounced on the loose ball before fizzing a cross-*****-shot towards the back post. But the anguish among the visiting supporters was audible as they watched their £4.1 million new signing volley the ball over from all of five yards.
Birmingham fully deserved their second goal, although questions must be asked about Ashdown's decision to leave his goal-line. Pennant jinked into the area after reacting first to a Sutton step-over, breezing past Noe Pamarot before finishing low to the left of the helplessly stranded Pompey keeper.
The visitors looked a little more breezy during the opening exchanges of the second half, although the wind was soon taken out of their sails by Blues' third goal of the afternoon. Pennant swung an inviting cross into the area for Upson to launch a diving header straight into the rippling net.
Just after the hour mark, Benjani was denied at close range by the legs of Taylor after Kenny Cunningham's slip had allowed him to pounce on the ball just inside the area, but Pompey's ploy of hopefully humping the ball forward to their two front men never looked likely to reap any reward.
Heskey and Sutton were outstanding throughout the encounter, and the former should have made it four, but he could only send his free header wide from close range after some superb link play between Pennant and the former Celtic striker.
A win became a rout on 91 minutes when Pamarot brought down Forssell, on as a substitute for Heskey, after the Finn had already ghosted past him. The former Chelsea man stepped up to the spot and made no mistake as he lashed the ball past Ashdown.
Dunn set the seal on an emphatic victory deep into stoppage time, showing great composure to drill an unstoppable right-footed finish home after being played in by a clever Sutton back-heel.
| Birmingham City | Team Name | Portsmouth | | 5 | Goals | 0 | | 7 | Shots on target ( Inc Goals ) | 4 | | 3 | Shots off Target (inc woodwork) | 5 | | 0 | Blocked Shots | 0 | | 7 | Corners Won | 2 | | 12 | Total Fouls Conceded | 24 | | 2 | Offsides | 2 | | 1 | Yellow Cards | 1 | | 0 | Red Cards | 0 | | 53% | Possession | 47% |
Report From 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
