Blues stalemate in Mido chase

Bruce said his chances of landing the Tottenham forward were now less than 50-50 after negotiations hit a wall.

But Blues were today confident of tying up a deal for midfielder Hossam Ghaly, Mido's team mate at White Hart Lane.

Bruce said: "We're still in talks with Ghaly and we're hopeful we will be able to add him to the squad.

"The Mido deal looks a little bit off at the moment and to be fair to the player it's not just about personal terms.

"That's been reported wrongly, there are different other clauses to deal with. To be fair to the player, I don't think it's to do with finance.

"I would have to say at the moment that it's less than 50-50. There seems to be a bit of stalemate."

Bruce will now turn his attentions to finding another striker.

But he admitted the search could prove difficult, and he hinted he would play the waiting game with the closure of the transfer window still five weeks away.

"It's about whether a a striker is available and whether you can get one," said Bruce.

"We've got four weeks to go and I believe last year we did our best bit of business in the week before the season with Nicklas Bendtner, Seb Larsson and Fabrice Muamba.

"We're always on the lookout. Ideally you would love everything to work but sometimes you have to wait and be patient."