If only . . .

By Colin Tattum on February 27, 2008 9:21 PM | Permalink

Blues will get to see another of the ones who got away this Saturday.

Spurs' Teemu Tainio was targeted by manager Alex McLeish soon after he took over.

Due to having to spread his money around, and Gary Cahill's snub, it wasn't until the 11th hour of the January transfer window that talks took place.

In the end, Blues withdrew from a £4 million - £5 million raid.

Tainio perhaps won't have been too disappointed as he collected a League Cup winners medal last Sunday.

Centre-half Cahill was another who slipped through the fingers of course, and the Georgia schemer Levan Tskitishvili, a cheaper alternative to Tainio (free, in fact), was denied a work permit.

Going back to the summer, deals for Mido and Hossam Ghaly fell through (lucky escape, that).

Blues would not meet Tuncay's £60,000-a-week wage demands after holding talks, but Mark Viduka was offered a king's ransom.

And Atletico Madrid's Peter Luccin was the midfielder who Steve Bruce pinned his hopes on, only for him to snub St Andrew's in favour of Real Zaragoza.

Oubina was brought in on loan instead - and we know what happened to him.

In fact, Blues were closer than many people realised to tempting Mathieu Flamini from Arsenal after a £3 million fee was agreed.

The top target, he spoke to Blues and Bruce, but decided to hedge his bets and stay put. So then it was onto Ghaly and Luccin.

Fredi Kanoute (honest) and Marlon Harewood (honest) were on the radar, bids for Jason Koumas and Dimonasy Kamara were never that serious, and a deal for Paul Konchesky was there to be done, but Blues dallied too much. Paul Robinson was a definite alternative, until Franck Queudrue was made available.

McLeish has certain ideas about where he believes he needs to strengthen the Blues team, and who he wants to bring in.

I suspect the summer could be one of considerable change, and that McLeish will lever a fair bit of cash from the board.

All that depends, of course, on staying in the Premier League.