Birmingham midfielder Gary McSheffrey has insisted he will not be affected by the St Andrews boo boys.

McSheffrey has come in for criticism from a section of fans in recent home games and by his own admission he has struggled to reproduce his top form after netting 17 goals during the 2006-2007 campaign.

McSheffrey said: "I'm a fan when I sit in the stands at Coventry - but I've also tended to look at it from a players' point of view as well.

"Players can be heroes one minute, villains the next. Fans pay their money so they're entitled to have a moan if they feel that someone should be scoring a goal or doing something that they're not.

"If I start crumbling because a few fans get on my back at St Andrews, then I'm really a weak person. I won't let that affect me because, if you score a couple of goals, then you're a hero again and loved again.

"You can hear them, of course you can. You are a human being. But you've just got to rise above them and be stronger than them. I took a whole lot of praise last season which was great and really appreciated.

"But everyone goes through a little bad spell in their career where fans get at them - and it is only a minority really."