Saturday’s impressive 2-1 win at Everton in the FA Cup took Birmingham City’s improbable unbeaten run into its 15th game. In the spirit of getting ever-so-slightly carried away, Sport.co.uk lists 5 reasons why Alex McLeish – the man behind it all – could go on to follow in the footsteps of a certain fellow Scot…



1. A knack for rejuvenating players

Sir Alex has long held the knack of getting the best out of getting the best out of his players, although his powers now seem to be dwindling. Regular Alex, who played under Ferguson at Aberdeen, has not received enough credit for not only rejuvenating the careers of Lee Bowyer and Barry Ferguson but also getting them to charge around the pitch like eager youngsters. Whether or not their legs hold out remains to be seen, but the singings of 23 year-old Craig Gardner and 24 year-old Michel – as well as the able Keith Fahey on standby – provide ample cover in midfield. James McFadden is enjoying his best prolonged spell of football since he moved to the Premier League, and Everton fans will have been shocked to see him working his socks off for the cause on Saturday.

The most impressive, and unlikely, return to prominence must surely be the re-emergence of Stephen Carr. The 33 year-old right-back was roundly mocked for his sluggish performances while at Newcastle United and during his latter days at Tottenham Hotspur, and he even announced his retirement from all forms of football in December 2008. Just two months later, however, he began training with Blues and impressed sufficiently to warrant a one-year contract. And now here he is playing regular Premier League football once again as an important part of arguably the meanest defence in the country. Hats off.



2. Attention to detail

The workmanlike manner in which Blues progressed to the Premier League last season suggested that they could do well in the top flight if embellished upon and, while that has happened to an extent, it is the organisation of the side that has perhaps contributed most to their long unbeaten run. The opposition are not given a second to decide what to do with the ball next, as evidenced perfectly by the perpetual closing down of an Everton side who last week played Manchester City off the park. The willing running of Christian ‘Chucho’ Benitez in attack allows the formation to compress and expand where appropriate; all in all, there are a lot of similarities with the Everton side that finished 4th in 2005. That side featured none other than Marcus Bent in the Chucho role and, with Bent apparently set to return to St Andrew’s from his loan spell at Middlebrough, perhaps McLeish can work his magic on another aging pro.



3. The understanding that a squad should be built from the back

Top three signings of the season? You could make a very good case for Roger Johnson, Scott Dann and Joe Hart. Granted, getting Hart only on loan may not quite constitute squad building but, just as Ferguson begat Parker-Bruce-Pallister-Irwin, and George Graham begat Dixon-Bould-Adams-Winterburn, so too has McLeish seen the importance of establishing a solid foundation upon which to build. Johnson and Dann have seized their Premier League break with both hands, constantly hurling themselves in front of the ball in the name of protecting leads, while Hart’s flying form should take him to the World Cup – quite possibly as England’s number one.



4. An imperious presence

Other Fergie protégés currently in management have impressed to varying degrees but only McLeish comes close to replicating the Manchester United manager’s formidable pitch-side presence. Mark Hughes is all furrowed brows and folded arms but fails to truly convince, Steve Bruce watches on hopefully while nestling into his lovely warm coat and Paul Ince is a clown. On the other hand, the man they call ‘Big Eck’ is a fearsome barker of instructions and it’s easy to see why his players don’t dare to stop running and closing down for even a moment.



5. He’s Scottish

…and every Scottish manager needs to be compared to Ferguson at some point. Right?