Sonner - 38

                                       Collins - 1

                                       Saha - 31

                                       Davis - 45

Goals from John Collins, Louis Saha and a cheeky effort from Sean Davis will get the headlines, but it was the conviction with which Jean Tigana’s side approached a tough away game in the midlands that was most impressive.

Unfortunately for Birmingham boss Trevor Francis, he had to watch his side limply surrender the three points and then see his £2.25m club-record signing Geoff Horsfield depart proceedings early for a precautionary x-ray on his ankle, which was damaged in a 35th minute challenge with Fulham keeper Maik Taylor.

It may be a new season of Division One football, but for the Blues and their injury plagued squad - some things never change.

Fulham have not left St Andrews victorious for 21 years, but they arrived in fearless mood and asserted themselves from the first whistle. It was an indication of what was to follow when Tigana’s side registered the games opening strike after only 42 seconds.

Barry Hayles, who was characteristically making a nuisance of himself, refused to let the home defence clear the danger and with the ball ricocheting around the Blues box, John Collins stepped up to cooly slot between two defenders from 10 yards out.

The only blot in a faultless first 20 minutes was a yellow card for skipper Chris Coleman, who was penalised for tugging at Horsfield’s shirt.

Birmingham, playing their first competitive match at home since the 4-0 defeat against Barnsley in the play-off semi-finals, looked nervous and disorganised. Even the usually reliable Michael Johnson looked unsettled, slicing an easy pass into the St Andrews crowd.

Danny Sonner, a free transfer from Sheffield Wednesday in the summer, let fly from long range but even his effort was bettered by a man in a white shirt, Ian Bennett saving well after Collins shot spectacularly from 25 yards.

Louis Saha confirmed the Cottagers dominance when he latched onto a woeful Darren Purse pass 35 yards from goal. The £2.1million purchase from Metz ruthlessly punished the error and confidently slotted under Bennett, after beating David Holdsworth to the ball.

Birmingham’s luck then went from bad to worse when Horsfield went off. Curiously, the misfortune seemed to ignite the Blues passion as Danny Sonner, in the 36th minute, marked his home league debut with a tidy turn and finish.

However, it took only nine minutes for Fulham to wrestle the initiative back, albeit with a controversial strike.

With Bennett lining up his wall and a posse of Fulham players standing over a 20-yard free-kick, the impressive Sean Davis sneaked the ball around the wall and into the bottom corner of the net.

The legibility of the goal may have been open to question, but the scoreline was a fair reflection of a very one-sided game.

The second-half failed to live up to the high standards of the first and only threatened to burst into life when Martin Grainger cut Bjarne Goldbaek in half with a ground-shaking challenge in the 69th minute.

Marcelo hit speculatively from 35-yards and Louis Boa Morte danced his way into the penalty area, but nothing could take the attention away from the Fulham’s first half performance that hints London may soon have another team in the Premiership with Gallic flair at its core.