Birmingham Mail

THEY have the better skill almost to a man, the more experience, they have all the local lads, and they have players who have played in this game before.
Despite a couple of average performances and a horrid 45minutes against Man United, everyone seems to be bubbling.
Everyone, yes everyone, seems to be pointing to a Villa win in the derby at Blues.
"Yes, but Blues are at home and the roar will scare the living daylights out of 'em", I hear some of you say.
Don't make me laugh.
The last time Villa were at Blues their supporters left their voices in the midday pub.
You could have heard a pin drop when Kevin Phillips scored that goal and it rarely got louder.
Villa's players play infront of 40,000 most weeks, and sometimes 50,000. So 26,000 Brummies shouldn't upset their apple carts.
Furthermore, Villa also head into the game with pretty much a clean bill of health. Ashley Young should shake off a groin niggle, and John Carew has been training all week.
So no wonder I've spent the last few days surrounded by heaps of Villa optimism ahead of the biggest game of Martin O'Neill's 15 month reign.
And that's where my worry comes in. And it is a major concern to me.
Back in September 2002 I just couldn't see Blues getting near to Villa.
I thought Alpay and Olof Mellberg would swallow up every attack, and I thought the likes of Gareth Barry, Darius Vassell and Juan Pablo Angel would have too much for Blues.
How wrong I was.
Then the return at Villa Park, again I thought Villa would be too good. Wrong, big style.
Robbie Savage won't be there tomorrow, which helps, but my fear is that like that first time in that very first season Villa appear to be heading into the contest with overwhelming confidence.
Still, at least no one- bar General Krulak- wound Blues up in the papers in the run-up to this one.
I remember Mellberg was 'stitched up' good and proper five years ago by a national newspaper for saying he hadn't heard of the Blues players. He never meant it at all like the way it came out. He never watched any footie on the TV at the time, the press had known that at the time, and how was he supposed to run through the list of a promoted club, one to eleven? But queue big headlines and Steve Bruce's team-talk was done for him.
It was Mellberg again a few years ago who made the mistake of saying he didn't like Blues as a club and could never see himself playing for them. Honest, true, but not so wise. Not at all.
Villa boss O'Neill took the decision this week that none of his players would speak at all to the media, apart from Barry and Agbonlahor to the club's own media department. Good idea that. No way the wrong message could come out.
A few others: Petrov and Mellberg had spoken to some press at the end of the Derby County game.
Even Blues have been cagey this time. Liam Ridgewell has been wrapped in cotton wool and saved from a spell infront of the cameras. Good for him. I like the guy and hope he has a good afternoon.
So O'Neill's softly-softly approach should help Villa.
There couldn't have been any worries from Villa in the build up to this most important of weeks as Villa's media officer has kept a low key approach. Very low key. So low key he was up in Cumbria on a training course and his one call to me in four weeks has been over the West Midlands Fire Service.
Never heard from him, not even when David Gold came out with a flurry of punches to Krulak's jaw, so to speak, over an apology that never was.
Fair play to the supporters paying £45. That's 50p a minute. Outrageously steep.
But as for the outcome, I am going to have to sit on the fence.
1-1 seems about right. Blues impressed O'Neill against Wigan and the game, I think, means slightly more to them at this point in time.
For Villa the end game is to try to pip one of Manchester City, Portsmouth or Blackburn into the top seven and that ain't gonna be easy.