Bruce pays Chelsea tribute

Birmingham City manager Steve Bruce has paid tribute to Chelsea ahead of his side's PremPlus encounter with the champions.

The former Manchester United defender appreciates just what an achievement winning back-to-back titles is, and he understands the size of the task facing his relegation-haunted team on Saturday.

Bruce cannot see his old team overhauling Chelsea in the title race, with only seven games to go.

"We've got Chelsea and have had huge, big games," he told Sky Sports News. "And Chelsea come to town now, it's also going to be difficult to play against them.

"It looks like they're favourites to go back-to-back winning the championship which is the most difficult thing, I believe, because you can win it the first time but can you go on and repeat it the second?

"They're nine points clear with six or seven games to go. Their consistency and level of performance is a staggering achievement.

"I've never really looked at the top end of the table, to be honest," he smiled. "I know how difficult it is at the top and the bottom.

"I know which position I'd rather be in.

"But you look at the consistency of Chelsea over the last couple of years. They've lost a handful of games, are resilient, difficult to beat, and that's the mark of champions.

"They'll gain from the experience of last year and I'm sure they are going all out to win it as quickly as they possibly can."