David Dunn says the Carling Cup offers Birmingham City a route into European football but they must first overcome the obstacle of Manchester United in the quarter-final.

Saturday's draw paired Steve Bruce's team against a Manchester United team who extinguished West Bromwich Albion's hopes last week after a scintillating performance at Old Trafford.

Albion were left chasing shadows as the hosts cruised to a 3-1 win and Dunn knows it will be a severe test for Birmingham at St Andrew's on December 20.

They face the Red Devils eight days later in a Premiership fixture at St Andrew's and a place in the semi-finals would be an ideal Christmas present for a side in the thick of a relegation battle.

The team that United select to face Birmingham will depend on how they fare in Wednesday's Champions' League tie against Benfica.

If they lose and are eliminated then Sir Alex Ferguson is likely to parade all of his leading lights against Birmingham.

Dunn, who was part of the Blackburn side that lifted the Carling Cup in 2002 when they beat Tottenham in the final, said: "It is a decent draw because we are at home but we could have been paired with far easier opposition.

"If we can pick up a couple more wins before we face them there our confidence should be high and you never know at home.

"It is a good feeling when you win a cup and it is also a good way for us to try to get into Europe, which would be a big boost to the club.

"I am feeling OK within myself but it will take time to get back where I want to. The performance at Milwall in the last round wasn't great but we won and I will take results over performances at this stage of the season all day long."

* Doncaster Rovers' reward for sending Aston Villa crashing out of the competition is a home tie against Arsenal.