Match Report: Preston North End 2-1 Birmingham City

Match Report as Blues fell to a second defeat in three days at Deepdale. A review of the game, the tactics, players and conclusions on a frustrating night.

Birmingham City made it back-to-back defeats after a 2-1 loss at Deepdale in front of American owner Tom Wagner.

Blues took the lead early in the second half when Jay Stansfield beat Freddie Woodman. However, a spectacular Krystian Bielik own goal and Milutin Osmajic strike were enough to give the hosts the win.

John Eustace made two changes to the side that lacked a spark at Vicarage Road last weekend, Emmanuel Longelo replacing the suspended Lee Buchanan at left-back while Koji Miyoshi stepped in for Scott Hogan, allowing Jay Stansfield to lead the line. Junior Dixon stepped into the first-team squad for the first time.

The game started in scrappy fashion, both sides intent on being organised, tenacious and not ready to let the game settle. Keshi Anderson and Oli Burke failed to find team-mates at the end of good moves while Preston had a couple of set-pieces.

Blues' first decent efforts came when Krystian Bielik and Cody Drameh failed to connect cleanly with efforts from a free-kick delivery. Liam Millar led the first Preston break before Drameh dribbled into danger leading to Brad Potts firing wide on the stretch.

Dion Sanderson found Anderson with a brilliant pass only for the ex-Blackpool man to sky over. Ivan Sunjic showed composure to find Miyoshi who forced a decent stop.

Blues couldn't have asked for a better start to the second half. Sunjic cleared over his head and found Miyoshi whose quick thinking set Stansfield away. Liam Lindsay slipped as he went to tackle and the Southwest born forward made no mistake.

It could have gotten better when Miyoshi turned Jack Whatmough again, only for the defender to clip him as the Japanese international led a 3v2 charge.

Then came what can only be described as a moment of madness. Kevin Long is stood on his six yard ready to head away when Bielik, who was desperately chasing his man to the near post having lost him, tried to head clear right in front of his Irish team-mate and subsequently gets nudged off balance and heads past John Ruddy.

Blues responded excellently. Total domination of the game. Anderson, Stansfield and Longelo saw efforts blocked in the space of 30 seconds. Miyoshi turned Liam Lindsay and found Sunjic who forced a good low save and the man from Japan then found Stansfield who was again denied by a Preston leg before Anderson forced another save.

Every Blues fan knew what would follow. It was brilliant from Adam Browne in fairness. A nutmeg on Sunjic. A sidestep round Sanderson. A perfectly weighted pass into Osmajic who struck low and hard from close range to finish.

Blues didn't respond well this time. Decisions were panicked. Composure had gone. The quality of the passing and movement had dissipated. For all their possession, they failed to create a single meaningful effort on goal and it almost got worse when Ruddy was forced to tip over Duane Holmes' long range effort.

A pitiful finish as the hosts saw the game out.


Lineups

Preston

Woodman; Storey Whatmough (Hughes 48) Lindsay; Potts McCann (Brady 48) Ledson (Whiteman 68) Millar; Holmes Browne; Osmajic (MFJ 77). Unused: Cornell; Cunningham Best Woodburn Stewart.

Blues

Ruddy; Drameh Sanderson Long Longelo; Sunjic (Bacuna 71) Bielik (Gardner 87); Burke (James 87) Miyoshi Anderson (Hogan 82); Stansfield. Unused: Etheridge; Roberts Aiwu Khela Dixon.


Tactics

Blues the same shape as usual here despite discourse early in the week about moving to a three. Stansfield started as the lone striker with Miyoshi behind him.

The plan in possession was to draw Preston on via the flanks then spring in behind via the wingers. This was either done directly by playing in Anderson or Burke. Anderson would sometimes drop off showing Miyoshi to make the run down the left. Or Drameh would play inside so that a midfielder could set Burke away.

Preston tried to deal with this. Potts (RWB) or step onto Longelo with Storey (RCB) then shifting across to Burke. On the other flank, Browne (LAM) was tasked with Drameh with Millar up against Burke. However, Millar wasn't really tasked with chasing Burke all the way back and Lindsay took this job with the other three members of the back five stepping across. If Blues broke this, Preston would sit in a deep shape with almost all men behind the ball and the back seven tight and deep.

If Blues played backwards, this would change a little. Millar would step into Drameh, Browne or Holmes would step onto a centre-back with the other on to Sunjic and Bielik, joined by one of the deeper midfielders.

What Preston wanted was the transition. Nick the ball off Blues in a dangerous area and spring. This was clearly shown around midway into the first half when Potts and Millar burst forward, Osmajic made sure he got between the centre-halves and Browne and Holmes also got into the box with the deeper central midfielders in support for the cross.

When Preston had possession, they were searching for the wide options, building to make the switch to Millar or Potts, the spare men in the Blues press. Preston played forward with intent to play in the Blues half and they wanted Millar to isolate Drameh, a battle he was getting the better of.

Stansfield and Miyoshi would initially sit on the deeper midfielders hut Stansfield was quick to press the centre-half. Miyoshi would then be supported by the winger on the opposite flank with the nearest winger pressing the full-back on that side. Blues' defensive box would marshall the front three and if Preston did get in down the flank, the full-back was tasked 1v1 to win the duel.

At the start of the second half, Blues tried to be braver with the ball, playing shorter and sharper to bring Preston on then play forward centrally into Miyoshi and Stansfield, which dragged Whatmough out of position.

Ryan Lowe made two changes. Andrew Hughes and Robbie Brady replaced Whatmough and Ali McCann. Hughes moved to LCB, Brady to LWB, Browne dropped deeper into midfield and Millar moved up top alongside Osmajic. It suited Brady to stay deeper and gave Preston more bite in the middle. Not that this worked early on.

Osmajic's injury forced another change. Millar moved up front on his own with MFJ playing with Holmes as a 10, reverting to the 3-4-2-1 shape they started with. MFJ often took up wide left positions which meant Blues had to be a little cautious even while chasing the game.

Hogan replaced Anderson late on. Hogan moved up front with Stansfield playing wide left. With space less available, Miyoshi started playing out on the right more, particularly after Burke was replaced by James and Blues could be more fluid.


Players

Another game where the defensive quartet were generally fine but three of them ended up involved in poor decisions for the two goals, so how highly can you praise them? I don't think they covered themselves in glory towards the end either with their decision making in possession to help us build, either too slow or too hurried.

Longelo was chucked in at left-back and held himself accountable. He had a few loose touches early doors but held his own, grew into the game and won his fair share of duels. His decision making after the second goal was really poor, forcing things and not getting his head up. Positives and signs he can back up Buchanan, but lingering frustrations remain.

Stansfield is the most ruthless finisher we've had since Che Adams. Miyoshi is a bright spark. Anderson had moments and I can understand the frustration for him being taken off ahead of Burke - I can only assume it's continued fitness issues, especially with three games in a week.

Oli Burke. Built like a racehorse but unfortunately has the touch and composure of one too. I'm hoping to see some dexterity in his displays as he gets match fit but the early signs aren't promising - he struggles with the simple stuff and once the space was drowned out by Preston, it became akin to playing without an option on the right.

For Preston, Alan Browne was their best player. Superb for the second but he was also full of energy and aggression and led by example. Millar excelled in his 1v1 duels but looked lost up top. Duane Holmes was bright.


Additional details

Tom Wagner was in the away end speaking and taking pictures with fans.


Conclusions

This was infuriating.

The plan was there. We gave Preston very little while playing on the front foot and exploiting gaps in their armour. The final ball wasn't always there but you could see the thought going into each decision.

We were excellent for the first 25 or so of the second half. Domination. We moved the ball with purpose. We moved off the ball with purpose. We were first to every second ball and found gaps. We had a couple of moments where we would have three or four efforts at goal.

Then we concede and go to pot. The decision making turned horrendously. Rather than giving the ball to a team-mate and progressing up the pitch, we started forcing it. We started crossing needlessly when an easier option was available. We started launching balls to nobody. We started switching play unnecessarily. It was panicked and painful to watch.

This was infuriating because we beat ourselves rather than Preston beating us. A brain dead decision for the equaliser. We concede one shot in 30 second half minutes and concede two goals. And then we make stupid decision after stupid decision when we chase the game.

I can't fault the effort. I can't fault the game plan. It's just players panicking unnecessarily, a polarising performance to the one we gave after going behind against Millwall.

There isn't much to worry about. We've got key bodies still to return - Laird, Dembele, Roberts, Hall, Jutkiewicz - and this is a learning process. Blues haven't been the good side that need to break teams down for a long time and it's a big mentality shift for management and playing staff.

It doesn't make it any easier to process as a fan, of course. This was just annoying.