Alex McLeish ready to agree new deal

Birmingham manager Alex McLeish has insisted it is time to strike a deal over his new contract.

Talks have dragged on since the end of last season and McLeish is keen to resolve his future as he enters the final year of his deal.

And the Blues boss believes now the players have returned for pre-season the time is right to do a deal.

McLeish said: "Now we're about to embark on another campaign I think it's right to drive things forward.

"It's the right time, because if there are players attracted to Birmingham and players attracted to play under myself then they have to know my future is with Birmingham."

But McLeish isn't worried talks have taken so long, as his priority was ensuring Blues finished ninth in the Premier League last term.

He said: "Is it a concern it has gone on for so long? I don't see it as such at all. I said at the time I was more focused on getting Birmingham to the best position in the Premier League in their history.

"There were little talks in between but I really felt to get the season completed was the first thing to do."

McLeish is hunting for a new first team coach, after Roy Aitken left Blues last night to link up with former Villa manager David O'Leary at Dubai outfit Al Ahli.

But the club have no intention of letting their manager slip away, with vice chairman Peter Pannu ready to offer new terms.

He said: "We've had extensive talks with Alex and his representative. His agent told us what he wants and we told his agent we will be revisiting the terms and we are currently putting together a new package.

"Alex has an existing contract, he is doing a great job. We want to keep him here, naturally. Whether Alex accepts it or not is purely speculative so there is no point in me talking about that.

"We don't want people to think that we don't want Alex to stay."