Charlie Austin continued to fulfil his role of super-sub for Slaven Bilic as he settled the West Midlands derby at St. Andrews this afternoon.
Charlie Austin Strike Settles Enthralling West Midlands Derby
Birmingham City 2-3 West Brom Albion
The fans present at St. Andrews, and the global TV audience, could be forgiven for feeling a sense of déjà vu.
In March, at The Hawthorns, these two sides produced another 3-2 derby with the same wild swings in momentum and, eventually, the same victor.
It is West Brom’s fans that emerge from the match with bragging rights in the workplaces of the West Midlands once more.
Entertaining Encounter
The Birmingham fans had the first cause to celebrate in the match as Lukas Jutkiewicz produced a powerful header past Sam Johnstone.
The lead didn’t last long as Grady Diangana continued the fantastic form that is really allowing him to stand out in the Championship.
He gave West Brom an early leveller with an opportunist effort in a crowded penalty box.
Birmingham fans will probably feel looking at the match statistics that their team was deserving of at least a point from the encounter having outshot the Baggies and won the corner count 7-2.
Blues fans would have been expecting something from the game after Harlee Dean headed Blues back into the lead early in the second half.
The match turned on the introduction of sharpshooter Austin.
His first, after 73 minutes, was a superb piece of play. He flicked Jake Livermore’s pass and found the back of the net with a half-volley from the edge-of-the-box.
The winner was more routine but still showed a marksman’s touch. Austin peeled away and planted a header past Trueman in the Birmingham goal to send the Baggies’ fans into raptures.
The victory temporarily lifts West Brom to the top of the Championship; perhaps more importantly, increasing the gap back to third place still further.
Albion look to be in a very strong position leading into the festive period.
Words: Andy Watson
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