You are in > manchester.com  > News > McLeish 'will stay' even if Blues go down

General Sport

McLeish 'will stay' even if Blues go down

26/04/2008

Birmingham City's co-owner David Sullivan has insisted that manager Alex McLeish will keep his job even if the club are relegated from the Premier League.

The Scot only took over from Steve Bruce at the end of November, having previously led Scotland to the brink of qualification for Euro 2008.

However, in comparison to his international success, McLeish has so far failed to take Birmingham forward and the side now lie in the bottom three, with just three tough fixtures against Liverpool, Fulham and Blackburn left to save themselves.

"Whatever happens, McLeish stays," Sullivan told the Daily Express.

"We'll sit down and plot a buying and selling campaign. If he does well for us, he'll end up at Man United."

Sullivan added: "Alex knows football is a marathon not a sprint. Unfortunately, we're now down to a sprint, we're down to the last half mile."

The Blues go into this weekend's match against Liverpool on the back of last week's humiliating 5-1 defeat to local rivals Aston Villa, though they look set to be given a boost with the return of influential Swedish striker Sebastian Larsson.

However, captain Damien Johnson will miss the crucial St Andrews xclash as he serves a three-match ban.

Birmingham currently lie one point behind Reading and Bolton in the race for Premier League survival.