STEVE Bruce could be a future England manager in the making given the way he's transformed the fortunes of Birmingham City.

The Blues have always been one of the game's sleeping giants and now Bruce appears to have woken them from their slumber.

He's done a terrific job at St Andrews in the last two and a half years, especially when you consider the club were treading water in the First Division when he first took over there.

The thing that's impressed me the most is the quality of his signings.

Last season, when the Blues were struggling against relegation, Bruce dipped into the transfer market and made the signings he needed to ease the club away from danger.

Then last summer, he injected even more quality in the form of people like Mikael Forsell and David Dunn and the Blues have come on in leaps and bounds since.

Some of the credit must go to the board, of course, for stumping up the cash to make those signings possible.

But it's Bruce's vision that's ultimately behind it and don't be surprised if he goes on to manage one of the big boys in the next few years.

He's already been linked with the jobs at Manchester United and Newcastle and I can see him at one of those clubs if Birmingham keep progressing like they are at the minute.

Then who knows? He may just end up managing England one day.

In the meantime, it's disappointing that David Dunn will miss tomorrow's game through injury.

When Dunny's fit and playing well, we all know he's very close to being an England player.

But he just can't seem to shake off his hamstring problems which must be a major worry.

It could be make or break for him next season. Injuries have meant he's barely played in the last two years and if he really wants to impress Sven then it's vital he gets a full campaign under his belt.