Aston Villa defender Olof Mellberg has warned Birmingham City not to be fooled into thinking that his side may not be at their best ahead of Sunday's derby clash.
Villa turned in a mediocre performance against Derby County, the Barclays Premier League's bottom club, last weekend yet still managed to grind out a 2-0 win.
And the Swedish international believes Martin O'Neill's men may finally have acquired the knack the top teams have of winning matches, even when they are not playing at their best.
Mellberg is convinced his team-mates will now step up their game on Sunday lunchtime at St Andrew's, an occasion which means so much to both clubs and their respective fans.
He said: "The game against Derby wasn't a good game but we scored the two goals and got the three points. They made it hard for us as well, especially in the first half, and they defended quite deep and played with only one up front, so it was difficult to get any space.
"But am I confident for the Birmingham game? Yes, definitely. It is important to win even if you are not on top of your game. We probably need to raise our game a little bit for Sunday and I hope the Derby game showed we have acquired the knack of winning when not playing well. That is really important.
"All the top teams, that is what they do and sometimes that can be the difference from being up there challenging and being a mid-table team.
"We played Manchester United a fortnight ago and they didn't really play that well. We dominated the game but then, all of a sudden, they were 3-1 up at half time without really having much of the game. It is all about taking chances."
Mellberg says the atmosphere surrounding the Second City derby has changed since Blues returned to the top flight in the 2002-3 season but will still be warning some of Villa's rising young talents what to expect.
"When I played in it for the first time [the famous 'Enckelman' game at St Andrew's in September 2002] there was a real tension
because they hadn't been in the Premier League for quite a long time and they were really the underdogs. But it is different now. We have played them a few times and the atmosphere is a little bit different now but it is still always a tough place to go to."
The Swede believes some of his younger team-mates will have never sampled anything like the derby mood but he is confident they will cope - particularly as several, including Gabriel Agbonlahor, Zat Knight and Craig Gardner, are Birmingham boys who play with the club they supported as youngsters.
Mellberg said: "The young players who are playing for us at the moment are full of confidence and playing really well. St Andrew's is a tough place to go but I don't think it will be a problem for them in particular."
As for former Villa defender Liam Ridgewell, who made the unusual step of accepting a cross-city move to Blues during the summer, Mellberg wishes him well - after Sunday.
The current Villa right back said: "I haven't spoken to him much since he left Villa and hopefully he won't be too happy next weekend. But I think it was a good move for him. It certainly looks like it so far. He has played every game and he is captain as well, whereas he played only on and off when he was here.
"I hope he gets a decent reception from the Villa fans. There is always a little bit of booing going on when a former player goes to a rival. You hear it with Newcastle and Boro and with the London derbies but Ridgewell is a strong character so I am sure he will handle it.
"Being captain has definitely helped his game. He has always been a confident lad and a strong character and that is probably why he is the captain at the moment."
Striker John Carew is winning his battle to be fit for Villa after missing the last six games with knee-ligament damage. Winger Ashley Young is also recovering from the groin injury which forced him off during the victory over Derby.
