Birmingham has passion to be like Manchester and Liverpool; NEW MEN AT ST ANDREW'S ON TAKEOVER: AND PLANS FOR BLUES' FUTURE.

Byline: ANDY WALKER 

BLUES chief executive Michael Dunford wants to see the city of Birmingham standing shoulder-toshoulder with the North-west's football hot-beds.

Dunford spent ten years at Everton from 1994 where he rose to the position he now holds at St Andrew's. So the 56-year-old has had a firsthand view of what having two Premier League giants has done for Liverpool.

And in nearby Manchester, the millions that have been pumped into City has helped raise the excitement levels as the blue half go all out to catch their all-conquering neighbours.

Dunford has only spent the past week in the Second City but already admits that he senses a similar feeling brewing beneath the surface in Brum.

And in a cheeky dig at Blues' bitter rivals, he insists that his new club are only slightly behind Villa.

However, he's hoping that will all change following the arrival of the Carson Yeung era and ultimately help Brummies feel as proud of their football scene as Mancs and Scousers.

"You always want to live the dream. This is the second largest city in the country and always will be, in our life times anyway," said Dunford, who was also chief executive at Championship outfit Plymouth before being made redundant during the summer.

"Liverpool is a passionate place for football. Manchester is a passionate place for football, so is Glasgow. London I think lacks a little bit of that passion.

"In Birmingham you can sense that passion. You can walk down the streets and meet Villa fans and Blues fans and they are passionate people about their football. What we've got to do, it's easy me sitting here saying it, but we've just got to light that piece of touch paper and try and take them with us.

"Can we make promises? It'd be an absolute folly to make false promises.

All we can do is our best and hope they believe in us.

"Yes, Birmingham has got potential to be up there with Manchester and Liverpool. Look at the population. When you look at it over the years since the war, both clubs have been in a yo-yo. Sometimes the Blues have been in front of Villa. At the moment Villa are slightly ahead of us - they may think that they are a long way ahead. So let's give them a run for their money.

"It's about, first and foremost, improving Birmingham City Football Club, year-on-year, on and off the field."

It has been a whirlwind few weeks for Dunford, as he was only approached about being Karren Brady's replacement less than a fortnight ago.

However he has quickly bought into Yeung's plan for the club, although he is keen to stress that it's a step-by-step journey - despite the Hong Kong tycoon's pounds 80 million transfer pledge. And, more importantly, Dunford is keen to welcome back disenchanted Blues fans.

Journey "Wouldn't we like to sign Wayne Rooney and people like that," joked Dunford, who started his career in professional football at Derby County in 1969. "That is a bit down the road but, all joking aside, I think, and Carson has already said, that we are setting off on a journey now and the first thing has got to be to remain in the Premier League.

"Realistically there are only four or five clubs in the Premier League who can guarantee staying in the Premier League. We've got to improve on the field, Alex McLeish knows that, the supporters know that and the board and management know that.

"So come January it will be quite a busy period, I would imagine. Providing we spend wisely, let's hope that we will become an established, successful Premier League club.

"Can we guarantee it? There's not a person walking on this earth that can guarantee a lot in football. But it needs investment. The president has outlined that he's prepared to do that, so we've got a good chance.

"But we need to take the people out there with us in greater numbers. They've got to believe in what we are trying to do.

"Hopefully they will, but it is down to us to prove to them that we are genuine people and can deliver something because they've been let down maybe in the past."

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YEUNG GUN: Hong Kong businessman Carson Yeung finally takes control at St Andrew's this week