Alex McLeish will study Bobo Balde in training for Birmingham City target
May 22 2009 by Andy Walker, Birmingham Mail
BOBO Balde has often been painted as the pantomime villain following his stubborn refusal to leave Celtic.
A money-grabbing mercenary who cares more about self-gain than team success would be an easy way to pigeon-hole the unwanted centre-back.
However, in truth, Balde, who will train with Blues in July while Alex McLeish runs the rule over the free agent, is a dedicated professional who has just stuck by his principles.
The 33-year-old, full name Dianbobo Balde, is a very private man who hasn’t given an interview in more than two years and is far from the bad-boy that some would presume.
A keen photographer, he is believed to have once took action shots of a Celtic match from the sidelines after being frozen out.
He has shown his charitable side by sending sports equipment back to Guinea, the African nation he represents on the international stage.
The former Toulouse player, brought to Scotland by Martin O’Neill, shies away from the spotlight and when once quizzed about his hobby he modestly said: “I don’t think people would be interested.”
