Our man in Burton Steve Eyley reflects on Albion’s survival hopes amidst a downturn in results, the loss of striker Jamie Ward and a dearth of goals over the Christmas and New Year period.
Assess Burton's season for us so far, much as expected? Any particular highlights and lowlights?
SE: The aim was always to stay up - no more than that. We were understandably every pundit's favourite to go down but now, for the first time, we now find ourselves in the bottom three - on goal difference - after 27 games. We have defied the massive odds against us, up until now.
It's been tough, although the defence has held up well and there have probably only been three league games so far where we've not put in at least a passable display. The players are busting a gut, probably playing as well as they can do, but without the financial clout to splash millions on new faces, it's going to be a massive ask to stay up.
It's all about fine margins in this league but increasingly we are ending up on the wrong side of the line that divides success from failure. So often recently in games, it's been 'close but no cigar', losing by the odd goal, putting in a decent display and failing to score.
As for lowlights, Saturday's last minute loss at Cardiff was particularly hard to take. Highlights have to be all six of the wins. Every point earned this season has taken a major effort. There are no gimmes, that's been clear so far. Defences are about the same standard as League One, the forwards are far more deadly, that has been the difference between the two divisions. Unlike Newcastle, we don't have a spare £20m to fork out on forwards, or even a spare £1m.
Really bad run of results over Christmas - simply a case of having to play Villa, Newcastle, Huddersfield all at once or something more concerning?
SE: Bit of both. Played well against Newcastle and Villa particularly, but the lack of strength in depth, compared to the opposition, plus no outstanding strikers for us to put half-chances away, helped the big clubs to narrow wins. Those exciting early days of the season, when we scored ten goals in the first five games, seem a very long way off. Goals are proving harder and harder to come by. In fact we haven't scored in 2017 so far. Don't expect your goalie to be busy on Saturday.
Has the style of play changed much since we last saw you?
SE: Still trying to be positive, 3-5-2 mainly, although we have experimented with 4-4-2 in some away games in a bid to try and get that elusive first away win, which finally came at Rotherham over Christmas. Plenty of chances created still, no end product really. Lack of confidence in front of goal must be a concern.
How was Jimmy's demise at QPR received in your part of the world?
SE: Personally, with a shrug of the shoulders. He WAS our manager once, and we are grateful for what he did for us, but he wasn't here that long and was always on his way to bigger and better things when the chance came, so I don't feel any great bond with him. Hope he gets back in soon but, to summarise that answer: couldn't give a toss really.
January transfer business done so far, and any more to come?
SE: Veteran striker Luke Varney was signed from Ipswich although a punctured lung on his debut has put him out for a while. Striker Marvin Sordell has come from Coventry until the end of the season with a view to taking him on for longer than that if it works out for all concerned. Passing midfielder Luke Murphy has come on loan until the end of the season from Leeds. Looks useful. Jamie Ward's season-long loan from Forest has ended early so that's not really helped on the goals front. We are looking at two or three more to come in before the end of the month, maybe one or two before we play you.
As befits a club that usually can't even fill its 6,900-capacity ground, we have had to wheel and deal. No million pound signings here. For a side in the bottom three, the defence has held up well so not really that much need to strengthen there, which must be rare for a team in our position.
Where is the team strong and where is it weak?
SE: Goalie Jon McLaughlin and his defence have responded heroically to the massive challenge. Sadly, opposition sides must know if they score two goals against us, then the game is won.
The midfield and strikers are working their balls off but there is a lack of decent crosses from the wingers - who double up as wing backs - and so the strikers are working off scraps - and we haven't scored in a month. Did I mention that problem?!
Midfielder Jackson Irvine's eight goals have been like golddust and his recent injury has been a real blow, depriving us of arguably our best player. I think we always knew we would have trouble scoring but the adrenaline rush of the first ten games perhaps convinced us we would OK up front. 'Fraid not.
Staying up?
SE: It's easy to be gloomy at the moment but we were expected to sink to the bottom as soon as the season started, yet we have only just dropped into the bottom three. However, at the mo, it's hard to see where the next goal - never mind the next point - is coming from. The same phrases crop up when discussing the season: "deserved to get something out of the game", "played pretty well", "not getting the rub of the green" (all true) but increasingly the unspoken phrase that could be added to that is: "probably not quite good enough".
I have to keep stressing what an unbelievable achievement it would be to keep a club of this size in this league.
It's all about money at this level. We have overcome this problem at various levels in the past but I fear it will be insurmountable in the end. I hope I'm wrong. We remain well run off the pitch and I don't believe Nigel Clough has put a foot wrong so far, so the hard work of all concerned deserves reward. They will keep battling to the end, there's no doubt about that and a change of luck could be just what we need,
It's been a bad six weeks results-wise and we need something - a goal, a point, even three - to turn it round ASAP.
The Twitter @SteveEyley1
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