O’Leary hails returning Phillips after stunning winner

Birmingham 0 Aston Villa 1

O’Leary was forced to press a less-than-fully-fit Phillips into action after his calf injury with Milan Baros ruled out because of his achilles problem and Juan Pablo Angel jet-lagged after returning from World Cup action in with Colombia in Paraguay.

But the former Southampton striker produced a deadly finish mid-way through the first half to halt Blues’ run of six games without defeat in the Second City derby.