Wembley - 2011

The time has almost arrived.

Wembley. At last. A major final. At last.

Birmingham City are on their way; the Cardiff dance has come and gone. Vans and windscreens, come and gone.

As a top-flight team, Blues are contesting a final of substance at Wembley for the first time since 1956.

The bete noire that is Arsenal are the opponents, and nobody is suggesting that they are anything but favourites.

It's been eight games since Blues have beaten the Gunners, way back in 2005 on the last day when Emile Heskey nicked the ball from Philippe Senderos in the 89th minute and bashed the winner.

Arsenal had an eye on the FA Cup final a few days later, which they won on penalties against Manchester United.

Ironic, then, that that was their last trophy.

In the build-up to Sunday, plenty has been said and written already about Arsenal's trophy 'drought' and how important it is for them.

Well, try 48 years. That's a proper drought.

Yes, Blues are underdogs, but they should not be discounted as mere pups.

Arsene Wenger, however many here feel about him, will know that. He won't take Eck's men lightly.

It was significant for me that when the teams met on New Year's Day, Wenger paid Blues plenty of respect by resting his first choice unit at Wigan Athletic the game before, and then unleashing them at St Andrew's.

Arsenal were not just fresh, but they were mentally and physically ready for Blues. In the past, they have perhaps been a bit sniffy and dismissive.

Not that evening, which ended in a 3-0 defeat, and not on Sunday.

The absence of Cesc Fabregas and Theo Walcott due to injury is a major plus for Blues. Fabregas was desperate to play, to captain Arsenal in a final. It meant so much to him.

But it does to Blues, too. Not just the thousands of fans who will descend on Wembley and will be anything but blase as many of the big guns support, used to final after final, tend to be.

But also to the players.

I like the build-up Blues have had to this final. Alex McLeish has tried to get the balance between recognising the importance of the game, and maintaining a normal routine and not over-playing it.

Blues travel down to their pre-final hotel on Satuday, after training. They won't be going to a secret hideaway, or making - nor have they made - a song and dance over the whole shebang.

That tells me despite the odds being against them, and despite such a game coming round once every 10 years or so, it's not a case of Blues simply just glad to be part of the occasion.

McLeish, beneath his amiable, intelligent and dry wit exterior, is a fierce competitor. He wants to win the thing, so do his players.

Now, you never know, some might freeze on the big day. Some Arsenal players might freeze; you can actually argue a case of the likes of Ben Foster, Stephen Carr, Roger Johnson, Lee Bowyer, Barry Ferguson, Nikola Zigic and Obafemi Martins being just as used to big games, flicking through their CVs.

And only a smattering of players in this current Arsenal side have won domestic medals.

And certainly the message coming from Wast Hills this past two weeks has been not one so much of defiance, but a quiet determination to spring a surprise and not be the gallant loser.

On the club's day this week for the media-at-large, Cameron Jerome, Sebastian Larsson and Foster, plus McLeish, patiently answered all the questions, talked in admiring terms about Arsenal, their football and players, but there was no hint of fear, nor wonder.

Again, it smacks of Blues being prepared to do a job, to do whatever it takes, to rewrite the history books and make the rest of the country notice them properly.

Of course it all boils down to how well the players perform, not just the will on the day.

I can't see McLeish employing different tactics to those he has already against Arsenal.

The emphasis will be on keeping a sound, solid midfield shape. And getting a lot closer, and pressing Arsenal more than they did at St Andrew's on New Year's day.

Whether that means 4-5-1 or 4-4-1-1 is the moot point.

The back five picks itself. Martin Jiranek has slotted in well for Scott Dann and he has plenty of experience not to be fazed.

At the Emirates, Zigic started and Aleksandr Hleb was just behind. Craig Gardner was banned from the game and the speficic task of wideman Keith Fahey and Sebastian Larsson was to keep a check on the raids of Arsenal's full-backs, who are so often a big part of their attacking capablities.

Zigic was decent that October afternoon, scoring his first Premier League goal with a towering header.

He has had a purple patch of late, and his height and the way he has been imposing himself on defenders physically has brought him to the fore in regards a start.

His mobility is the area of concern as when you have the ball against Arsenal, you have to make use of it as you might not see it again for a while.

At St Andrew's, Gardner was tasked with supporting Jerome from midfield and Jean Beausejour started on the left.

Blues were much more open, Arsenal enjoyed the space, and Fabregas, Samir Nasri, and Robin van Persie were everywhere running amok.

Bowyer's reintroduction to that role wide on the left, for the semi-final second leg against West Ham United and thereafter, makes me wonder if he will get the nod there again.

Had Martins( pictured here doing his somersaults and not suffering from an Arsenal tackle) joined, then Jerome would most probably have led the attack for Blues.

His pace does trouble Arsenal's defence, but Martins's impish and tricky, yet bullish, football could be more to McLeish's liking for the game-plan, if Zigic is selected from the off.

It is probably harder to nail McLeish's likely selection for the final than it is Wenger's in all truth.

He will want to be sure in his own mind that those who he does go with not only fit the tactical framework, but possess the mental capacity to cope.

If Blues can make it a bitty game, not an end-to-end football fest, then that will suit much more. Maybe not the neutral observer, but they are not at Wembley to entertain, they are going to try and win.

And as this video suggests, maybe, just maybe this is their time . . . ?