Hughton ready for biggest night

Chris Hughton is preparing for the biggest 90 minutes of his managerial career as Birmingham entertain Blackpool tonight (7:45pm) in the second leg of their npower Championship play-off semi-final.

Hughton watched his side emerge from Friday night’s first leg at Bloomfield Road on the end of a 1-0 defeat, knowing a poor performance sprinkled with chances meant the result could easily have been 3-0 as much as 1-1.

Blues will now look to overturn that deficit and set up a Wembley showdown against West Ham on May 19, with the most lucrative match in world football guaranteeing the winners an immediate return to the Premier League — and the riches that entails.