January 2010 Archives

It was hard for Craig Gardner to conceal his delight.

Being introduced to him into box 12a at St Andrew's - once the chief executive's (Karren Brady's) box, now the president's - Gardner had a grin as wide as Olivier Tebily's neck.

He pointed to where he and his family sat in the Main Stand and talked about just what it meant for him to join his boyhood club.

He told V***a boss Martin O'Neill that he wanted to leave for Blues, no-one else.

And the story about him being mascot for John Frain's testimonial in 1996 was true, as the picture with Paul Devlin that night shows.

I always think it's important to have a home-grown player or two in your team, especially in these cosmopolitan times.

Think what Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher are to Liverpool, and what Liverpool might be without them.

Gardner will certainly give that little bit extra in a Blues shirt, and his presence and commitment will not go unnoticed in the dressing room by any 'outsiders'.

Brought up in Yardley, he has a feel for the club, the city and that can only help at a stage in Blues development when we may see some big names ending up at St Andrew's and more foreigners.

In itself that could bring extra pressure but judging from Gardner's determination to be at the forefront of Blues resurgence, and a four-and-a-half-year contract, he's quite happy to deal with it.

Lee Carsley's the same, another down to earth Brummie from that Sheldon/Yardley area who has been able to pass on the significance to others of what Birmingham City is, what it means to the people, what fans expect of their players.

Gardner revealed that he had been speaking to Carsley regularly ever since Blues revived their long-standing interest in the summer.

And he admitted that even when he was on the dark side of town, he still managed to pop up at St Andrew's.

"I've been down a few times, hiding with my hood up," Gardner laughed.

"I've sat in Cars' executive box in the Main Stand, trying to go unnoticed.

"It was at the Man U game. He kept going 'get down', things like that. It was funny.

"Now I'm here and everyone knows I'm a Blues fan, there's no need for all of that. I just can't wait to play."

And the first thing Gardner did after signing in a £3.5 million deal was purchase two executive boxes for himself and his family.

It was a strange experience watching David Sullivan and David Gold at their unveiling press conference.

There was Sullivan in a claret smoking jacket that just kept making me think, for some reason, 'Bob Monkhouse'.

Gold was attired in a more sober suit and tie combination and less forceful and forthright of the two in his comments, as we have come to expect.

It was a far cry from when Sullivan rolled up for his first day at Blues, with Karren Brady tottering alongside him.

Back then it was nudge nudge, wink wink, snigger snigger because of Sullivan's background and the Daily Sport newspaper.

Now, having proven themselves very capable operators in the business of football in the 16 years at Blues, Sullivan and Gold were held up as some kind of knights in shining armour, at the forefront of a romantic tale of salvage on their field of dreams, Upton Park.

I'm sure any Brummies looking on will have been cracking a wry smile here and there at the odd comment, a knowing nod of the head too.

A seven-year plan to get in the Champions League . . . despite £110 million of debt?

Funds for new players (within reason) and a determination to move into a new stadium, the 2012 Olympic arena three miles up the road?

An invitation to anyone with £15 million or £20 million to come on down?

East End boys coming home (anyone mention that Sullivan is from Cardiff?) and all that.

In these parts we know how they operate, we know what makes them tick; I don't think they quite do in the smoke.

I always say this: that they did very well for Birmingham City, and did very well out of Birmingham City.

When they could have maintained an upward progress Blues plateaued in January 2006, the transfer window that never was. The collective will and drive died, as did the Casino Project.

Things yo-yoed on, same old, same old. There was a fracturing of the Blues 'family' Carson Yeung and his buddies are so keen to redress.

And Sullivan, Gold and Brady could have handled their actual departure and the sale to Yeung so much better and left on more amicable terms, with a consensus gratitude and respect from fans.

The fun times reviving a moribund Blues, the crazy days of Bazza, the heartache of TF's near misses and then promotion to the Premier League and the subsquent excitement and optimism . . . all that was lost in a fog the last few years, and months.

I always said to Sullivan that despite all his gripes about players, money, agents and fans, he would miss football once he got out. He enjoys striking a deal, the cut and thrust, the grief. His two boys are at an age where their enthusiasm for the game has rubbed off on their dad.

To Gold it's like oxygen, he loves being part of the football thing. I'm sure he felt at a loose end, if not lost, after finishing at Blues.

I think they will bring stability to West Ham and maybe lower the ambitions of fans to more realistic levels, whether they like it or not. I would be amazed if West Ham got anywhere near the Champions League, but not surprised if Matthew Upson decided he had to be first to the exit door.

There's bound to be fall-outs along the way, and unpopular decisions will be made, moans aired. But that's all part of the absorbing package, that's them - and that's for a new audience.

What will happen is that everything they do will be scrutinised in much more microscopic and hysterial detail. You wouldn't believe how many key positions in the media at large, across all sections, are filled by West Ham fans.

They hold this image of Sullivan, Gold and Brady as having splashed out squillions on transforming Blues from the Birmingham Works' League to Premier League.

As one Fleet Street newspaperman remarked to me recently about the trio: "They're going to be in for a shock. The nationals never really cared about them when they were at Birmingham, apart from the odd juicy row and Karren's 'celebrity' profile - because they didn't care about Birmingham."

And because West Ham won the World Cup (yawn, yawn. . . ), they will be flavour of the month for some time until a balloon goes up.

What did disappoint a little were the constant references to West Ham being where they 'really' wanted to be all these years, that they had 'come home', how Blues fans disliked Sullivan but now he was among his own in the East End.

Sure, the emotion of the occasion was strong, but a little more respect would have not gone amiss.

Before it was certain they would take over the Hammers, Brady even said that despite spending 16 years at Blues 'their heart was always at West Ham'. Charming.

You can't just airbrush out that long at a place as proud as Blues as if it didn't matter, as if it didn't help turn you into what you are today - and help you get the club you've got today.

Michel? Craig Gardner? Where's the marquee players, the Ronaldos, the Messis, et al?

It's simple really. Alex McLeish has banged on about building step by step, not trying to fly to the moon when the rocket is still going through its checks on the launch pad.

Not only are availability, economics and the equilibrium of the dressing room taken into account when Eck has been sifting through the potential targets for this present transfer window, but also the need to rebuild a squad.

After the watershed of the Dunns, Izzets, Heskeys, Gronkjaers and Melchiots, Blues decided to go down the avenue of drafting in players for the short term (think Chris Sutton, Ulises de la Cruz even).

Sure, there were gems to be had, like Stephen Carr recently, but it was always with a view to being able to cut lossess if need be.

Even Barry Ferguson and Lee Bowyer came into this category when McLeish had to manage to a different budget last summer.

No, the trophy players who would generate excitement maybe and a better profile in China especially are to come. But not now.

It is easier to get Michel and Gardner at present and McLeish needs such types to breathe new life into his squad, fresh hunger, and options for the future.

Who is to say that Michel and Gardner don't become the new Ferguson and Bowyer? They are similar-ish types, respectively.

Who is to say they don't back-up a couple of world class stars in time?

McLeish is bolstering the Blues squad all right and that's not surprising when you look at the players who are coming to the end of their contracts.

Players out of contract June 2010:

Christian Benitez, Lee Carsley, Joe Hart, Damien Johnson, Artur Krysiak, Sebastian Larsson, Gary McSheffrey, Garry O'Connor, Stuart Parnaby, Krystian Pearce, Kevin Phillips, Franck Queudrue, Liam Ridgewell, Jacob Rowe, Maik Taylor, Martin Taylor, Shaun Timmins, Gregory Vignal, Jared Wilson.

Players out of contract June 2011:

Marcus Bent, Lee Bowyer, Stephen Carr, Colin Doyle, Barry Ferguson, James McFadden, Mitch McPike, Jordon Mutch, James O'Shea, Ashley Sammons, Robin Shroot.

Their are, admittedly, options on most of them. But not all will be retained by McLeish. Take a glance at the bench in recent weeks and ask yourself how many of those players will be around this time next year.

Nothing lasts forever; there are players whose time has passed and who need to be replaced by the up-graded versions, if Blues are to prosper as Carson Yeung would like in the future.

But you can't all of a sudden stuff a team, a squad, so full of flamboyance and high maintenance stars that it's like the Harlem Globtrotters. Unless you are Real Madrid, I suppose.

And if Blues do manage to get into Europe - McLeish hates such talk, but rather that than relegation - they will need plenty of bodies to call upon. And not just space-fillers, but quality performers.

So it's evolution we are seeing, not a revolution of Manchester City style proportions.

Everywhere new Blues signing Michel goes, he has one thing on his person: an English-Spanish dictionary.

He turned up with it when he formally met the press at an official unveiling at St Andrew's.

He doesn't speak English yet, but he is obviously keen to get to grips with the language.

Mind, if Alex McLeish starts talking 'nippy sweetie', 'gallas', 'blutered' and 'shooty in', he might as well give up now.

Good job he didn't join Stoke City, I'm not sure 'launch it' translates very well. Had he gone to V***a, maybe 'set-piece' would be all that he needs to know.

Michel, say the people who have been around him the past few days, will thumb through the dictionary when he hears new words.

He wants to learn and immerse himself in his new surroundings as quickly as possible, which is always an encouraging sign.

He answered media questions via Blues interpreter, Giles, the silver-haired gent you may see in the technical area on match days (no, not Roy Aitken) who has been Christian Benitez's translator.

Michel, to my mind, has been earmarked as Barry Ferguson's heir apparent. He is comfortable in possession and likes to pass the ball.

As to whether he will cope with the physical nature and hurly-burly of football on these shores, he gave the impression that he knew what he was getting into.

And, according to those who have seen him in La Liga, he's been known to stick his foot in and mix it.

He comes from the Asturias region of north Spain, which is very temperate, very British in its climate. So he's not sullened by a drop of rain. He seems to have taken the recent snow in his stride as well.

He has watched Blues twice now and was smitten by the atmosphere at the Manchester United match and the unique theatre of such a Premier League encounter.

Michel came through the ranks at Sporting Gijon and, interestingly, has spent only one-and-a-half years in La Liga. Sporting were promoted from the Second Division in 2008.

Therefore, it's quite a bold step for Michel and Blues.

The last Spanish player to come to St Andrew's didn't fare so well.

Borja Oubina was brought in on loan from Celta Viga, got three minutes as a substitute at home to Bolton Wanderers and was stretchered off after just 13 minutes of his starting debut at Liverpool in September with ruptured knee ligaments.

We never saw him again. Steve Bruce put great store in Oubina as Blues playmaker, someone who could keep the ball for the side and hopefully make them tick.

McLeish, after taking the job, felt Blues needed just that sort of player too and has Ferguson, another clever schemer in Teemu Tainio and now Michel. Blues midfield is now less dogs of war, more pedigree chums.

Alex McLeish takes the plaudits and is praised up by his mentor, Sir Alex Ferguson.

Plus he's also busy in the transfer market trying to spend Carson Yeung's money.

Vibrant and interesting times at Blues.

McLeish received his trophy - the December manager of the month award - for masterminding Blues record-equaling unbeaten run.

He said: "It's with great pride that I accept the Barclays manager of the month award.

"It is a reward for the hard work, dedication and professionalism shown by many people behind the scenes - not least my coaching team, the players, club staff and the supporters.

"This is a pat on the back for everyone at this club who has given their all so far this season but we won't allow it to affect our focus - we know there's still a long way to go and we'll continue to work hard to achieve our aim of staying in the Premier League."

He showed the award off at a snowy Wast Hills just as Ferguson's biting comments about Blues old regime surfaced.

And the Manchester United manager also had some nice words to say about his one-time redoubtable Aberdeen centre-half. They can be found here - as well as David Sullivan's reply.

Eck and Fergie lock horns at St Andrew's on Saturday evening, of course.

Michel should be in the stands watching and Kenwyne Jones will be taking more than a passing interest in how Blues fare.

But how that potential transfer pans out now remains to be seen.

There are strong words coming out of Sunderland and Steve Bruce at present, and if there has indeed been a shift in the sands, it could be that the total package for him has mushroomed alarmingly for Blues.

And incidentally, watching Patrick Vieira's press conference at Manchester City, it struck me that this was the sort of short-term signing Blues would normally try to make in a January window (and it might have been last August, of course).

Instead we have Michel, an up and coming player, not an old lag on a big wedge, and attempts for the likes of Jones, Babel and Aiden McGeady.

Vibrant and interesting, indeed.

Here's a question: if Carson Yeung has refused to say how much money Blues had to spend in January when he took over, what would we be all thinking right now?

Just not sure, what have they got to hide, something fishy to me etc. . . ?

That Yeung did reveal the '£20 million (dramatic pause) to £40 million' at his press conference was in part a mistake (never let the sellers know how much the buyers have to play with) and in part refreshing openness, a statement of intent caused by excitement perhaps.

I gather it was not in his original brief to quote figures.

What's happening now is that Alex McLeish is being questioned because he hasn't yet spent the £40 million, or is likely to, which, in my view, is a bit daft.

There are a few things to remember.

First, it's up to £40 million to include wages.

Second, Blues superb first-half of the season has lessened the need to go charging in, gamble on a player or two and basically panic because you fear the relegation trapdoor.

Third, the January market has changed, and Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger both say there is no value to be had in it at present.

Fourth, the days of getting an Upson for £750,000, a Clemence for £500,000, a Clapham for £1 million, a Coly for . . . no, scrub that one . . . have gone.

Even a Savage, a Cunningham say; the equivalent sort of players are sitting tight and happy in burgeoning Premier League squads and not available, or don't want to be available.

A bog standard Premier League player costs £5 million now, plus minimum £15,000 - £20,000-a-week wages.

Fifth, attracting players to Blues is still a tough sell. Edin Dzeko, aside from the £18 million asking price - if not double that, if you believe some reports - has his sights set on bigger fish. Milan Jovanovic wants to run his contract down to join AC Milan in the summer.

Then you have Kevin Kuranyi, who would like to take home £70,000-a-week net. I was asked a month ago by a Blues director was he worth paying that much.

It's a minefield in January and Blues eighth place in the table and 32-point haul has brought McLeish and the club welcome breathing space.

Blues have a better chance of signing better players in the summer when the transfer kitty, a large chunk having not been blown this month, would enable McLeish to flex more muscle. And the range of players available is greater.

He has put great store in not upsetting the dressing room with dubious characters on big money and fair enough. As I have written before, the esprit de corps is the best it has been since the first promotion to the Premier League in 2002.

But, when push comes the shove, McLeish knows he is going to have to assimilate big earners who have come for big fees if Blues want to maintain their status and progress over time.

That's when it's going to be a test of his judgment and how to man-manage such players and the rest. In that respect, he has dealt with egos at Rangers and run a national team. And there are some strong characters about at Wast Hills too, but he has them all singing from the same hymn sheet.

Sometimes you can be perhaps critical of Eck in that he wants it just so, the sure thing. His diligence is very meticulous. His contacts book is vast, believe me, and he is very well connected in foreign circles. He will ask himself 'is he really better, is he really an improvement?' and counsel many opinions.

The canny Scot in him, maybe, yet better that than a Harry Redknapp style scatter gun approach?

With a club like Celtic looking at £10 million for an Aiden McGeady, he is just going to have to bite the bullet at some stage and shell out the £6 million, or £8 million, or more and so on.

It's the going rate and if Yeung and the owners are happy to pay that - and can sustain the club on such lines - for a player McLeish thinks is the right quality and type, then do it. Across the road at V***a, Martin O'Neill regularly likes to whack out such sums on full-backs who then don't always see the light of day.

McLeish isn't afraid of spending heavy in one hit, don't subscribe to that contrary theory, even though throughout his career he has had to balance the books and his largest outlay was £6 million for Mikel Arteta.

His comments on the subject on Boxing Day made for interesting reading.

And I am sure it will come, the club record transfer fee will go, if not in this window then in July or August.

Yeung and his board have accepted that now is not the time for 'trophy' signings, who would generate PR but maybe not as many points you might expect.

Again, Blues league position has helped in that respect, and good on them for listening and letting the manager manage. He deserves that after what he went through last season, and soaked it all in like a sponge with quiet dignity.

McLeish needs to slowly but surely beef up the quality and depth of the squad, which won't happen overnight.

I suspect that the major signing(s) will come in the summer and this month it will be about adding solid building blocks.

Go through the team and the roster and it's clear that, eventually, he needs to be securing the next Barry Ferguson, Lee Bowyer, Stephen Carr.

Kevin Phillips, Lee Carsley, Franck Queudrue, Damien Johnson, Marcus Bent, perhaps Gary McSheffrey, Martin Taylor, Garry O'Connor and Maik Taylor, aren't going to be around in 18 months, if not six.

That's why, at present, Michel not Michelangelo is heading to St Andrew's. That's why Kris Boyd has been considered again, as a squad player, not a prime target (although he is likely to stay put until his contract expires in June by all accounts).

Blues need to walk before they can run and that's why no-one should feel let down if McLeish doesn't spend £40 million - it's not obligatory and hardly realistic in January anyway.