Birmingham City v Wolves: Promotion is all that matters to Blues says Kevin Phillips

Apr 6 2009 by Colin Tattum, Birmingham Mail

Kevin Phillips

KEVIN Phillips today admitted Blues’ players have been fully aware of the barbs aimed their way this season.

Yet he said they were committed to the task in hand – winning promotion – by whatever means.

Tonight’s opponents Wolves have been praised for their manner, Reading too; Blues have tended to be looked upon as a curmudgeonly side.

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Phillips said: “To be fair, we read the comments but we have a lot of experience in the squad and we’ve seen and heard it all before. We don’t let it get to us.

“It doesn’t matter how we get there, to the Premiership, all that matters is that we get there.

“You can be in a team that plays excellent football but misses out. The be-all and end-all is promotion. Let Wolves play the pretty football if that’s what they do, good luck to them. We will carry on what we’re doing.”

Comparably, Blues are actually not dissimilar to most Championship teams in truth. But credit has tended to be winged elsewhere.

Phillips, who spearheaded Peter Reid’s Sunderland side which romped the division in 1998-99 and the successful Albion team of Tony Mowbray last term, noted: “I’ve been promoted by miles, and with an excellent team last year. This season, I can’t honestly say that, looking back, we’ve strung two or three performances together on the bounce when we’ve gone ‘we played well today’.