A boyhood Bluenose who watched Birmingham City lift the Carling Cup on their last visit to Wembley will keep goal for them this time around. Ryan Allsop has played at Wembley twice before, winning on both occasions, but neither will compare to his third appearance under the arch when Blues play Peterborough United in the Vertu Trophy. “To play at Wembley full stop is a dream, but to play there with your boyhood club is something else,” says Allsop. “It’s a little bit surreal and I’m relishing it. I want to take it all in and keep those memories with me forever. “I try to take a step back and take it all in every single time I play for Blues, especially at St Andrew’s in front of the Tilton. I don’t want it to pass me by, I want to make sure I’m taking it all in. “It’s something I know my family are very proud of. To be able to call myself a Birmingham City player is special.” Peter Ndlovu was Allsop’s favourite player but he can reel off players from the nineties and early noughties like it was yesterday. “Looking back, I had some great memories coming down with my dad. I remember going to a soccer school on a Saturday and then I’d rush home, have some lunch, and we’d come straight to the game. I’d always want to go in the Blues shop and get a kit, or a Beau Brummie teddy.” Allsop’s parents will be among his supporters at Wembley, as will his wife and children, and his aunty who hasn’t missed a single Blues game this season. In a campaign that will reach 60 games when all is said and done, that is an impressive feat. As with most footballers, Allsop’s family played their part in ferrying the goalkeeper to and from training when he was a youngster – and helping him deal with early setbacks, such as being released by West Bromwich Albion. “I remember my dad taking me when I was four and I would always put my hand up to go in goal,” explained Allsop. “And my dad used to say, ‘If you put your hand up again I’m not taking you!’ Then the next time I went I would put my hand up to play in goal and eventually he accepted it.” It was always goalkeeping for Allsop, even if his exceptional ability with the ball at his feet makes you wonder whether he was a midfielder in his younger years. Though he admits: “If I had nothing to do, I fancied myself as an outfield player at points, like most goalkeepers do. I didn’t want to lose doing both. “I enjoyed doing the technical work that we did with our feet. At West Brom, between 14 and 18, they had lots of technical sessions and I used to really enjoy them and I’d get really involved with the outfield players and it grew from there.” Blues have benefitted from Allsop’s passing range this season. He recorded an assist for Taylor Gardner-Hickman’s vital winner against Wycombe Wanderers in early March and has added a new dimension to Blues’ attack with lasered long range passes to the wide players. His quality in possession hasn’t come as a shock. Allsop was one of the best distributors in the Championship last season in a Hull City side that narrowly missed out on promotion. Given the Tigers’ success, it was a surprise that Allsop was allowed to depart after just 12 months in Hull, but scratch beneath the surface and you learn that the goalkeeper’s position had become ‘untenable’. Liam Rosenior, the manager who was the driving force behind Allsop’s move to Hull having coached him at Derby County, was sacked by owner Acun Ilicali for finishing seventh. In a meeting with supporters to explain Rosenior’s exit, Ilicali admitted his desire to see Allsop replaced by rival stopper Ivor Pandur had created friction between the pair. Speaking on the subject for the first time, Allsop said: “I was aware of it, I had various messages about it. It sort of made my position at the club untenable. “It was a difficult situation to be honest and I do feel that I was made a little bit of a scapegoat for the team not getting to where he wanted to get. “The other goalkeeper was the owner’s signing and he’d paid a bit of money to bring him to the club, so he obviously wanted him to play and I believe Liam wanted me to play. There was a little bit of friction in that sense. “That wasn’t in my control, I was just trying to do my best for the club that employed me. I always step out and try to do my 110 percent best no matter what, if that wasn’t seen as good enough by him then so be it. “It was difficult but it’s obviously worked out with me being here. I couldn’t be happier to be here.” Allsop’s ambitions mirror that of Blues’ top brass. If everything goes to plan, this will be their last appearance in this competition for a very long time – maybe ever. “I still want to play in the Premier League and I know the club is very ambitious. It fits. I haven’t come here to slow down, I’ve come here to make the most of what I can bring to the club. “I want to make sure we get back to where we belong and in my eyes that’s seeing the club play in the Premier League, like I used to watch.”