Peterborough United boss is confident of a change in fortune for his side, but will it arrive against a big and strong Birmingham City team?

Peterborough United manager Darren Ferguson is confident there will soon be an upturn in his side’s form.
Posh manager Darren Ferguson.Posh manager Darren Ferguson.
Posh manager Darren Ferguson.

Posh go into a tough game against a physical Birmingham City side at the Weston Homes Stadium tomorrow (September 18, 3pm) on the back of four straight Championship defeats.

Posh are next-to-bottom having conceded the joint-most number of goals (17) in seven games and with the worst goal difference (-10) in the division.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But a defiant Ferguson said: “It is what it is. We’ve been suffering lately, but we’ve suffered in previous seasons and still come through bad spells successfully. We lost six in a row two seasons ago and still looked like winning promotion when the season stopped early.

Birmingham City manager Lee Bowyer.Birmingham City manager Lee Bowyer.
Birmingham City manager Lee Bowyer.

“It will turn again this season. I’m convinced of that. As long as we keep our standards in training high and we maintain our beliefs the results will pick up. We have to hang on in there as one win would make a huge difference. We are not sruggling because of a lack of effort and we are probably due a break.

“It’s a big game for us on Saturday and my job is to keep the players’ spirits up. It’s not so much how well we play on Saturday, it’s about getting a result. We might have to dig in against a strong, physical side who know what they are doing and they do it well, but we also need to be brave in how quickly we move the ball.

“It can’t be about ifs and buts any more, we just have to find a way. We are at home which helps and we have competed well against teams like Birmingham who like to play the game in the opposition half.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Home form has been vital for the last two seasons and it’s no different this season. Lee Bowyer (Birmingham manager) has done brilliantly since he went there. He’s simplified the way they play and they’ve become very efficient. They’ve started the season well apart from the Fulham game the other night (Fulham won 4-1) and they won some tough games when he first went in there and carried the momentum into a new season.

“They are a handful up front with Hogan, Jutkiewicz and now Deeney, while Chong is a very good player, but we are working on ways we can affect the game.”

There should be a third 10,000-plus crowd of the season at London Road tomorrow as Birmingham quickly sold out their allocation of just under 4,000 tickets. The match has been made all-ticket for Posh fans as well.

“The atmosphere will be fantastic,” Ferguson added. “If I was still playing I’d be looking forward to this game.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Posh will be without strikers Jack Marriott and Ricky-Jade Jones, attacking midfielder Joel Randall and centre-back Mark Beevers because of injury, but midfielder Jack Taylor is fit enough to start his first game of the season.