Steve Bruce's boys haven't clicked into gear yet this season and their only win came in a midweek fixture against Manchester City. That has made for a lot of uncomfortable weekends chez Melchiot and he admits he has even started blanking his good mates.

The 27-year-old Dutch international takes every defeat personally and has been wandering round like a bear with a sore head as Blues desperately try to live up to the pre-season hype.

Even a night in the north-east with his Dutch pals bit the dust after Blues turned in an X-rated performance at Middlesbrough. However, Melchiot admits that he will have no qualms about being a hermit every weekend until Blues' form picks up.

"I am a bad loser," he said. "It is good for your game to be like that, though. "I have a lot of Dutch friends at Middlesbrough such as George Boateng, Bolo Zenden and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

"It is not a trip that I am going to make many times this season and when we played them last month I arranged to have a night out after the game. "However, the game didn't go according to plan and, to be fair to yourself and your team-mates, you just go back on the bus.

"The guys at Middlesbrough under-stood why I went home - it is totally normal. "I want to do the same to them when they come to Birmingham and maybe ruin their night out!" Despite Blues' faltering start to the campaign, Melchiot reckons there is no need to panic.

"It has taken time but we are slowly getting there," he said. "You need time to work together but you don't have that time in the Premier League, so you have to keep going until you get a run of results.

"The first half at Bolton was the turning point. You just can't play like that. We waited for things to happen but you have to create your own things. If you are not dangerous then the opposition is always going to be on top."

Melchiot oozes confidence whenever he talks and is not afraid to tackle sensitive issues. The annual anti-racism week has just been launched and the fast-raiding right-back gives short shrift to people he claims "lack intelligence".

You don't come across much racism any more," he said. "However, I have experienced racism - especially while playing abroad in Europe.

"Some people have difficulty with themselves and talk about human colour - I have never had the problem of thinking like that. "It is just a lack of intelligence. If you judge people on their colour then it means you don't have the intelligence to look behind the colour.

"I don't upset myself thinking about things like that. I am a black person and I love my colour and I don't have a problem with that. "If other people have a problem - I can't help it."

Melchiot claims his confident approach to football is a necessity if his game is to thrive. When the brickbats are flying, many players retreat into their shell, but Melchiot is happy to come out all guns blazing.

"I always have confidence and I know people are expecting a lot from me as I came from Chelsea, and that adds to the pressure," said Melchiot. "But I am always very confident and that is the way I play. I have always had self-belief and I need that.

"That is the right mentality to have and, while you have to pay your opponent respect, you have to believe that you can come out on top."

And the next six weeks are critical for Blues in their bid to escape the relegation zone. They face Southampton, Crystal Palace, Blackburn and Norwich in four of their next six games. This gives them the perfect opportunity to leave the struggling pack behind and climb the table.

And Melchiot insists their quality will shine through. "Southampton and Crystal Palace are must-win games for us," said Melchiot. "However, it won't be easy because they are difficult teams to break down.

"They have the same problems as we have, in that they haven't managed to get on a winning run just yet. "We are dying for the points, but we are not struggling with our own minds. We still have the confidence and belief before every game that we can win.

"We have been losing and drawing games because of our own stupidity - not because we can't play. "When you start losing games because you don't have the necessary quality then it becomes a completely different kind of problem. "I don't think we have that problem and we are starting to understand each other's game more every week."..