Birmingham City boss to pick at bones of relegated Premier League sides

May 26 2009 by Colin Tattum, Birmingham Mail

BLUES will not be embarrassed to pick over the bones of the Premier League and Championship casualties now the ups and downs have been finally decided.

Alex McLeish and his staff have drawn up a list of potential signings from relegated top-flight clubs, and those who missed out on promotion.

Of course, Blues are not alone in that, and their relative lack of spending clout will not make for easy pickings, on the assumption that most clubs are unable to resist overtures.

Sheffield United were vanquished by Burnley in yesterday’s Championship play-off final, which is sure to spark interest in Matthew Kilgallon.

It’s no secret that Blues need to bolster the centre of defence, and he is reckoned to be one of the brightest stoppers around.

However, last week McLeish spoke about the predicament Blues faced when it came to Championship players and their inflated price tags.

Matt Mills, a January target, is pegged at £5 million by Doncaster Rovers and Cardiff City’s Roger Johnson, who Blues have been sniffing around, is rated at a similar amount. McLeish also asked that would such fees actually secure Blues players who were any better than £2 million Liam Ridgewell, who was excellent all season.

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate had a pop at McLeish for talking about David Wheater ahead of their Premier League demise at West Ham United on Sunday.