Changing room chat: Big Eck's shopping spree on hold

Published on Thursday 27 August 2009 22:55

BIRMINGHAM manager Alex McLeish has £5million burning a hole in his pocket but can't spend it, due to stock market rules ... in Hong Kong.

Prospective new Blues owner Carson Yeung has promised McLeish the transfer fund, and the Scot was keen to sign Middlesbrough striker Tuncay Sanli, but has pulled out of the deal for fear of breaking stock market regulations.

McLeish said: "In terms of the offer of money (from Yeung], I don't know whether the rules will allow it to happen. I would certainly put it to good use if I could spend it. It would be very welcome. But I'm not sure whether the rules which govern such matters will make that a possibility. It would certainly have been good in helping to tidy up the Michel transfer (from Sporting Gijon]."

McLeish insists he will not be able to meet Yeung or any of his representatives until the takeover is completed in the next few weeks. The former Scotland manager said: "I am not at liberty to meet any representatives (of Yeung] until they take over the club. In any case what is the point? It might not happen.

I don't know what the timescale is for the takeover, if and when it happens. It is not something that concerns me."

Back to the day job for Grosjean

ROMAIN Grosjean swapped his race overalls for a pin-stripe suit this week in a bid to keep his feet on the ground.

Grosjean made his Formula 1 debut with Renault in last Sunday's European Grand Prix in Valencia, finishing 15th after being handed the drive following Nelson Piquet's axe.

Although the F1 circus will swiftly pitch up in Spa this weekend for the race in Belgium, Grosjean opted to continue his part-time role in a Geneva bank. "I went back to work at the bank to keep in touch with reality," insisted the Frenchman.

Keegan factor at Dens

COLIN Cameron, the Dundee midfielder (pictured), reckons the free-scoring Dens Park side are just like Kevin Keegan's Newcastle. But he doesn't want Dundee to finish second-best like the Magpies as they chase promotion to the SPL

Speaking in the Daily Record, he says: "We've proved so far this season that we will score goals. But the big thing for us now is to start shutting the back door. I suppose you could say we're a bit like Newcastle under Kevin Keegan.

"They were winning games with scores like 4-3 but they still fell short at the end as they were prone to throwing away leads. That's why we don't want to fall into the same sort of category."

In the same paper, Aberdeen manager Mark McGhee has laid down a challenge to strikers Lee Miller, Darren Mackie, Tommy Wright and Chris Maguire to notch 50 goals between them.

The Dons have scored four goals in two SPL games, but McGhee says: "If we are to finish third we'll have to score around 50 to 55 goals. We are sorting out the service to our strikers so I feel within my rights to say I want 15 goals from each of my strikers."

Lowly Bayern get beers in for fans

FANS of Bayern Munich, who have made their worst start to the Bundesliga for 43 seasons, will get a chance to drown sorrows before tomorrow's home match with champions VfL Wolfsburg.

The Bavarian club are to give away more than 7,000 litres of beer before the game as part of a sponsorship deal with a Munich-based brewery.

Bayern fans have had little to celebrate recently. Louis van Gaal's side have taken only two points from three Bundesliga games and are languishing in 14th place after Saturday's 2-1 defeat by promoted Mainz 05.