Birmingham City's recent run of good form that eased them clear of the Championship relegation zone seemed to come out of nowhere. 

Last week saw them knocked out of the FA Cup in extra time at the hands of Premier League outfit Huddersfield Town before losing out in the second Second City derby of the season, as Aston Villa saw off the Blues 2-0 at Villa Park.

Before that, however, Steve Cotterill's men had lost just one of their last eight matches in all competitions to lift themselves out of the drop zone.

Results around them now mean that they are only two points and two places clear of the bottom three but the collection of individuals brought in under separate regimes inherited by Cotterill is now a cohesive team, which is definite cause for optimism at St Andrew's.

The resurgence might have come as a surprise to many observers but Blues defender Maxime Colin, who had to fill in at left back on Sunday in the absence of Jonathan Grounds, knows what has brought about the chance of fortune.

He told the club's official website: "At the beginning of the season, we didn't insist on the pressing as we do it now. In training, we really work hard on this; the coach really insists on the high pressing.

"That is the big change for me and now we press really high, we don't really think what's behind. When you press high, you catch the ball higher and you can score goals. This is the big change."

The Verdict

Cotterill needed to implement a style at Birmingham as they had been without an identity since Gary Rowett's sacking in the middle of last season.

The problem was that he had a squad made up of everyone else's players and very little money with which to change it up in January.

It is a testament to Cotterill's vision and coaching ability that he has been able to engineer a turnaround on the training ground - however the hard work is not done yet as they are still so close to the drop zone.

Birmingham fans - what are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments below...