BLUNDERS TO BLINDERS

After years of missteps and misery, Blues are now finally climbing back into the big time

- BY JOHN CROSS

AFTER more than a decade of misery, Birmingham City are on the rise.

The FA Cup fourth-round tie with Leeds will bring back memories of a different time for one of English football's great clubs.

This is a chance for Bluenoses to dream again after too many years of living in the shadows of their Midlands rivals.

And the future is bright for a club on the up. They are in touching distance of the Championship playoffs, have a bright young manager in Chris Davies and bold plans for a new £1.2billion 62,000-seater stadium.

At the heart of that is the Knighthead Capital Management - led by US businessman Tom Wagner ~ whose ambitious plans include the Birmingham City Powerhouse stadium (below, l-r, chairman Wagner, CEO Garry Cook and co-owner Tom Brady).

The club announced this week that Wagner had suffered a stroke but is making a good recovery and fans immediately responded with their own plans for a standing ovation during the game.