Charlton take on Birmingham today in a high stakes game for both sides.

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It is must win for Charlton who, with 8 games to go, are 6 points adrift of safety. They are showing signs of a mini-recovery under Jose Riga with an impressive 2-0 win over Middlesbrough in a game marred by protests against controversial Charlton owner Roland Duchatelet.

They followed this up with an important but rare away win at Brentford and a draw with the MK Dons but came crashing down to Earth with a 3-0 thrashing at Sheffield Wednesday.

Time is running out on Charlton who need to start producing results quickly with Ademola Lookman and Callum Harriott the key men.

Birmingham are pushing for the play-offs marking their extraordinary recovery under Gary Rowett, and the 8-0 defeat at Bournemouth last seasons seems a long time ago now.

They are 6 points off the top 6 with a game in hand but there recent form is shaky and they need to get back in form fast. They haven't won away since a 3-0 win at Derby in the middle of January and a 1-0 win over Hull is there only win last month.

The main reason behind there bad run of form is Clayton Donaldson losing his goalscoring touch and a lack of backups for him. But against the shaky defence of Charlton they will fancy getting back on track.

Here are THREE things to look out for in today's game:

1) Last chance saloon for Charlton

It has been a terrible season for Charlton and being 6 points adrift of safety with just 8 games left makes this a must win if they are to survive the drop. The fans blame their Belgian owners with their season shrouded in protests against Duchatelet and his associates.

A lack of investment in the squad has left them with a poor defence and attack. Ademola Lookman has been the star with the teenager tipped for big things and he needs to step up.

Their recent home win over promotion chasing Middlesbrough should lift them today as they look to exploit the poor away form of Birmingham. Forwards Harriot and Makienok need to step up and start scoring today.

2) Birmingham must get back on track

Birmingham had a terrible season last year under Lee Clark with an 8-0 win at home to Bournemouth spelling an end to his reign and Birmingham were in the bottom 3.

Rowett rebuilt them leading them to a comfortable finish and building a promotion challenging squad on a shoestring budget. Kieftenbeld, Maghoma, Toral and Morrison have all been brought in for nothing and have transformed the style of Birmingham who have a solid defence and good attack.

But Donaldson is misfiring lately and he is there only striker apart from Brock-Madsen so they need to sort this problem out if they are to make the play-offs as games are running out. Their form is dodgy with no away win since January and they are struggling to score goals.

3) The signing of Kyle Lafferty

With Birmingham making a charge for the play-offs they have been stifled in recent weeks by a lack of goals. The midfield has been productive with Gleeson, Kieftenbeld and Toral all presenting Clayton Donaldson with plenty of chances but his finishing has gone massively downhill but replacing him with Brock Madsen would be a risk.

So Rowett acted and loaned in Norwich striker Kyle Lafferty for the rest of the season, who is struggling for game time at club level but the big man is scoring plenty of goals for his country, Northern Ireland, and has led them to the Euro's.

He hopes he can get some crucial game time at Birmingham before the Euro's start and we could see him start today and his physicality will be problematic for the Charlton backline.

Charlton and Birmingham fans...What are your predictions for the match? Can Jose Riga's side avoid relegation? Will the Blues turn around their form and reach the play-offs? Let us know what you think in the comments below!