Birmingham City manager Gary Rowett has praised his side for their valiant display against Aston Villa in Tuesday night's League Cup derby.

The Premier League side were made to sweat against their second-tier rivals in the third-round clash at Villa Park, Rudy Gestede's goal just after the hour earning the hosts a narrow 1-0 win.

Rowett told Sky Sports News after the game: "A moment of quality undid us. It was a brilliant finish from Gestede, very hard to stop.

"For vast parts of the game, I thought we were excellent. We can count ourselves very unfortunate to have lost. We can walk out of the stadium with our heads held high.

"Tonight we've more than matched a Premier League side, and at times were better than them. We've got to do that again and now try and move up the league table."

Birmingham currently sit seventh in the Championship standings.