Master and pupil prepare to renew their auld acquaintance

Odds stacked against McLeish in bid to mastermind another major upset

ALEX McLeish was enjoying some Boxing Day banter with the Midlands media about how his decision to cancel Christmas Day training had been rewarded by Birmingham City's biggest win this season. So would the players get another day off on New Year's Eve? "When I played, my lights were always out by 10 o'clock on Hogmanay," he replied, although instead of getting across a serious message of self-discipline his words provoked a ripple of laughter.

The scribes wondered whether the former Scotland manager's turn of phrase was a Glaswegian euphemism for boozy excess. Fat chance. You do not play 77 times for your country without adhering to high professional standards. Besides, McLeish will need a clear head on January 1, which sends Birmingham to Manchester United and pits him against Sir Alex Ferguson, with whom his relationship has been one of protégé and mentor for three decades.

Ferguson, who turns 66 on the year's final day, has long been an admirer of McLeish, 48, both as centre-back and sometimes captain at Aberdeen and manager of Fergie's own boyhood heroes, Rangers. There was even a time, after the early death of McLeish's father, when Ferguson acted as his surrogate. More recently, the knight from Govan went on record to congratulate the boy from Barrhead for the "fantastic job" he did in taking the baton from Walter Smith, becoming master of Paris and leading Scotland to the brink of qualification for Euro 2008.

Adding spice to the reunion, Birmingham chairman David Gold is confident they have captured "the next Alex Ferguson". Gold detects "similar traits" in men from "almost identical backgrounds" and claims McLeish "even looks like Fergie at times". Ferguson himself recommended Birmingham to McLeish, having gained a positive impression of their inner workings from previous manager Steve Bruce, another of his old centre-backs.

It would be expecting too much of Big Eck to emulate the achievements of the man he still addresses as "Boss" and calls for advice; Birmingham have won one major trophy in their 132 years. Nevertheless, he shares Ferguson's determination to uphold the reputation of Scottish managers south of the Border. McLeish talks of "the desire to prove yourself outwith Scotland" which he sees as driven by "the old chip on the shoulder we Scots have".

The friends have locked managerial horns before, of course, when Rangers and United were in the same Champions League group four years ago. At Ibrox, Phil Neville's early goal left McLeish bemoaning the "travesty" of defeat after his team spurned a series of chances. That night he termed the tournament "unforgiving", a description confirmed by the 3-0 scoreline inflicted by Ferguson's men at Old Trafford where Cristiano Ronaldo and Ryan Giggs tormented Zurab Khizanishvili and Michael Ball.

The bad news for Birmingham is that Ronaldo and Giggs are still flying down the flanks. The Portuguese has matured over the 18 months since his World Cup spat with Wayne Rooney and proved virtually unplayable in the 4-0 rout of Sunderland on Boxing Day.

The good news may not be enough to worry the champions at a ground on which Bruce's Blues lost four out of four (and where they last won and scored from open play 30 years ago on Wednesday). Yet in the 3-0 victory over Middlesbrough, Birmingham's first since the fortuitous success at Tottenham in McLeish's opening match, there were signs that he and coaches Andy Watson and Roy Aitken are beginning to elicit the desired response from the largely youthful squad they inherited.

Mikel Forssell had particularly impressed. A predator's goal against Boro reminded McLeish of why he tried to sign the Finnish striker for Rangers when he was with Chelsea. Others who shone included Maik Taylor, who kept a first clean sheet in 13 games; Stephen Kelly, a full-back whose covering tackles often bailed out raw central defenders; and Swedish midfielder Sebastian Larsson, a Bruce buy from Arsenal.

However, the relegation trapdoor and the transfer window are twin features in the architecture of the English football season, making it almost certain that McLeish will be active when the market reopens on Tuesday. United midfielder Darren Fletcher, a player who excelled in his Scotland team, is one of several reported targets.

Gold and co-owner David Sullivan have reasserted control at St Andrew's after the flirtation with Chinese tycoon Carson Yeung. They have the resources to fund Birmingham's fight for survival. They also have the memory of a January spree by Bruce which netted Christophe Dugarry and Matthew Upson and helped avoid relegation in 2004.

The tangle with Ferguson comes too soon for McLeish to field a team he can call his own, and if Liverpool's Rafael Benitez complains that the playing field is not level because United have four or five £20m players to his one, note that Birmingham's probable line-up barely cost that amount in total.

Sweet as victory would be, McLeish knows that the more pressing new year priority is to dim the lights of their rivals in the mini league at the bottom. There again, as a proud Scot, Ferguson is only too aware that someone who proved capable of masterminding an away win over France should not, in theory, be daunted by the challenge of repeating the feat at Old Trafford.

GLORY DAYS

DURING their time together at Aberdeen in the 1980s, Alex Ferguson and Alex McLeish won ten major honours. McLeish was an up-and-coming centre-half when Ferguson was appointed manager in summer 1978, and the defender was a cornerstone of the side during the unprecedented run of success.

1978-79
Aberdeen reach the League Cup final.

1979-80
The breakthrough. Aberdeen win the Premier Division, becoming the first non-Old Firm champions since Kilmarnock in 1965.

1980-81
Celtic pip Dons for the title in what was to be Ferguson's last trophyless season at Pittodrie.

1981-82
Aberdeen beat Rangers 4-1 in Scottish Cup final, with McLeish scoring memorable goal.

1982-83
Success in Europe as Ferguson's side beat Real Madrid in the Cup-Winners' Cup final. And they retain the Scottish Cup.

1983-84
Scottish league and cup double for Dons, who also become first Scots winners of European Super Cup, by defeating Hamburg.

1984-85
Champions for third time in six years.

1985-86
Win League Cup and Scottish Cup.