Birmingham City FC

After years of trying, Darren Carter's penalty in a dramatic shoot-out against Norwich City ended Birmingham City's play-off hoodoo in 2002. However, City could be found in the lower reaches of the football league pyramid when the Premier League was formed in 1992 but Steve Bruce has overseen an impressive turnaround at St. Andrews.

Despite relegation from the Premier League at the end of the 2005/06 season, Bruce's Birmingham impressively bounced straight back up to the top-flight, finishing second in The Championship to secure automatic promotion.

Chairman David Gold has overseen Birmingham's turnaround since 1998 and the Ann Summers boss' investment has been pivotal to their success. The redevelopment of St. Andrews to a capacity of 30,009 provides the Blues with an impressive stadium to emberk on their latest Premiership campaign.

Birmingham City may face a tough task avoiding a relegation battle but with young talent such as DJ Campbell and Sebastian Larsson coupled with the experience of key players such as Northern Ireland international Maik Taylor, the odds may be in City's favour to avoid the drop.