Exclusive: What Lee Hendrie said when asked if Aston Villa are a bigger club than Birmingham City | OneFootball

Pundit Lee Hendrie has offered his thoughts on who the bigger club is out of Birmingham City and Aston Villa.

Pundit Lee Hendrie has claimed Aston Villa will always be a bigger club than arch West Midlands rivals Birmingham City, regardless of the ownership of each side.

Birmingham City and Aston Villa’s intense West Midlands rivalry stretches all the way back to 1879, when the first Second City derby was contested.

Both have since occupied and faced off regularly in the Premier League and Championship, while each have also tasted silverware success, with Villa winning the 1982 European Cup and Blues lifting the League Cup at Wembley in 2011.

There’s been a glaring divide between the two teams in recent times though, with Unai Emery’s men securing European football for three straight seasons, while Birmingham have had to claw themselves out of League One following their relegation two terms ago.

However, with the injected investment into Birmingham City that Tom Wagner has provided, there is optimism the sides will meet once again in the Premier League in the near future, as Blues aim to establish themselves as top-flight forces under the American investor.

With the profile of West Midlands football set to grow from both Birmingham City's and Aston Villa’s achievements, pundit Lee Hendrie has weighed in with his thoughts over a debate that will only keep roaring on. Who is the bigger club?

Lee Hendrie emphatically states Aston Villa are a bigger club than Birmingham City

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, pundit Lee Hendrie delivered his verdict over who the bigger club is between Aston Villa and Birmingham City, and after making 308 appearances while at Villa Park, he unsurprisingly leaned to the claret and blue direction.

Hendrie said: “There’s absolutely no doubt who are the biggest football club. I don’t care what owners are at Birmingham City and who is involved at their club, Aston Villa has been the biggest club in the Midlands for quite some time, and it will still be the biggest club in the Midlands, regardless of who is taking control at Birmingham City.”

Lee Hendrie response is to be expected due to Aston Villa connections

While the conflicting views of supporters on either side of an argument means there will never be a clear answer to a football debate, it’s no surprise to see Lee Hendrie backing Aston Villa.

Villa are certainly the club who have had the most success in their history when comparing the two clubs, being the only team from the West Midlands to win the European Cup, winning seven first division titles, and are the seventh most decorated club in English football with 24 major trophy lifts.

Added in to the fact that Villa Park’s capacity (42,640) trumps St Andrew’s (29,409) by quite some distance, Hendrie’s comments do seem justified.