Sky Bet League One
Matchday 29 of 46
Pirelli Stadium
Saturday, January 31st, 2026 – 3pm KO
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | CURRENT FORM
Burton Albion host the table-topping Bluebirds on Saturday with just one league victory in their last six games.
Since that 3-1 home win over Huddersfield Town on January 17th, the Brewers have fallen 2-1 in back-to-back away games at promotion-chasing Lincoln City and Bolton Wanderers. It’s not unfair to say that the fixture calendar has been a little tough on them since the turn of the calendar year.
What Burton fans can cling to as they sit three points outside the relegation zone in 20th spot, is that their home form is fairly competitive. Prior to the win over Huddersfield, they’d also taken the scalps of Northampton Town and Blackpool in their last six home fixtures, teams scrapping towards the bottom of the league with similar divisional concerns to our weekend opponents.
Last Six | Burton Albion's league form
Overall: LLLWLL
Home: WLDWLW
Away: LDLLLL
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT | THE BREWERS
Jake Beesley is having a decent season in front of goal for the East Staffordshire side, with four goals in his last six appearances and nine in total. He and midfielder Kyran Lofthouse lead the way with appearances this term (26 each) and are nailed on to start if fit on Saturday afternoon.
On-loan Bolton Wanderers ‘keeper Brad Collins is Albion’s man between the sticks, without a clean sheet since early December but having recorded one in the 1-0 win over the Bluebirds at Cardiff City Stadium back in late September.
Former Blackburn Rovers, Blackpool and Bradford City boss, Gary Bowyer, is the man in the dugout having linked up with the Brewers in December 2024. He’s won 21 of his 62 games in charge with 15 games drawn. Former Bluebird John Brayford is on the Albion coaching staff as First Team Coach.
2025/26 Squad
GK | Jordan Amissah, Brad Collins, Kamil Dudek.
DEF | Udoka Godwin-Malifé, Jack Armer, Terence Vancooten, Toby Sibbick, Nick Akoto, Kyran Lofthouse, Alex Hartridge, Jasper Moon, Dylan Williams, Jason Sraha, Sebastian Revan, Finn Delap, Josh Taroni.
MID | Kgaogelo Chauke, JJ McKiernan, Charlie Webster, George Evans, Jack Hazlehurst, James Jones.
FOR | Jake Beesley, Tyrese Shade, Fábio Tavares, Julian Larsson, Kain Adom, Jack Newall.
IN DAYS GONE BY
05/08/2017 | Burton Albion 0-1 Cardiff City
The Bluebirds and Brewers have only played each other on seven occasions in their joint history, the first time coming as recently as August 2010 with a 4-1 City home win.
City edge the head-to-head record with four wins to three, but perhaps the most fondly remembered encounter from a Bluebirds perspective came in August 2017 at the Pirelli Stadium.
Neil Warnock had enjoyed half a season in the Welsh capital prior to the advent of what would prove to be a monumental 2017/18 campaign for the Bluebirds. His new, robust-looking City side travelled to Burton on the opening day of the season and would depart in dramatically joyous circumstances.
Warnock would give debuts to Neil Etheridge, Lee Tomlin, Loïc Damour, Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Danny Ward on that sunny afternoon, but it was a re-invigorated Kenneth Zohore that had the telling, final word.
In a game of limited chances and early-season rustiness for both sides, City’s Danish striker created a moment of magic. Debutant Damour’s deft flick into the forward’s path allowed Zohore to shimmy and create space 20 yards from goal before firing low, left-footed into the bottom corner in front of a swathe of Carling-soaked travelling supporters.
It was the first stop in a season that took City all the way to the Premier League.
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