Aston Villa vs Birmingham: Steve Bruce appeals to fans for calm ahead of second city derby

STEVE BRUCE has pleaded with fans for peace ahead of Sunday’s Birmingham derby.

Aston Villa’s new boss spoke out in the wake of crowd trouble at Wednesday’s EFL Cup clash between West Ham and Chelsea.

There will be a high police presence at St Andrew’s for the first league meeting between the Second City rivals in more than five years which sees Bruce take Villa to former club Birmingham.

And he made it clear supporters need to behave at the game which has a noon kick-off.

Bruce accepts he will get stick from his ex-club’s fans — but does not want to see a repeat of the London Stadium violence.

The Villa boss said: “They’re ugly scenes that we don’t want to see at football again.

“For all the supporters going on Sunday, yes, shout loud and make your feelings known — but remember to behave yourselves too.

“Am I going to get a bit of stick? Of course. It’s good-hearted banter.

“What we don’t want, for our Second City, is a repeat of what we saw on Wednesday night.”

The fixture has been hit by crowd problems in the past.

Six years ago, Birmingham fans invaded the pitch following their side’s 2-1 Carling Cup win. Villa fans responded by throwing a flare and ripping up plastic seats.

In 2002, a Birmingham fan was jailed after invading the pitch and taunting Villa No 1 Peter Enckelman after his own infamous goal.

And in 2009, 25 people were convicted of violent disorder after a game between the sides.

Bruce insisted he will not over-celebrate if Villa win.

He added: “I’ll show the respect that needs to be shown.

“I practically worked at Birmingham for ten years out of 40 as player and manager, so I have the healthiest respect for everybody.”