McLeish ready to give Michel his chance

08 March 2010 16:21
Blues have to return to Fratton Park on Tuesday evening for a Premier League encounter as they aim to bounce back from Saturday's 2-0 quarter-final defeat.[LNB]McLeish has kept faith with the same starting line-up during an impressive run of results which has carried Birmingham to the 40-point mark. But he feels the time is right to bring in fresh legs and minds to ensure there is no dramatic fade-out in the final two months of the campaign.[LNB]Michel, signed from Sporting Gijon in the winter window, will be given the opportunity against Avram Grant's team after previously having only played as a substitute.[LNB]McLeish said: "We don't have injuries, maybe a bit of tiredness, and it is understandable after such a long spell with the players playing week in, week out, training hard every day, playing all these games.[LNB]"Players can also get mentally tired and maybe it is now appropriate for me to utilise the squad. There have been a lot of guys kicking their heels.[LNB]"A lot of guys, quite rightly, haven't knocked on my door because they know how well the team has done and I've told them they just have to be patient.[LNB]"There is an opportunity to perhaps play one or two of the players who have been sitting on the bench."[LNB]Talking about Michel, McLeish added: "We have to have a look and see what he can do. He has a lack of match practice along with one or two others.[LNB]"There's no doubt he can handle the ball and it's time to look at a couple of the players.[LNB]"I don't need to mention what I've seen in training because we brought him here because we knew what he could do.[LNB]"But the form of Barry Ferguson and Lee Bowyer was excellent and the momentum from these two guys meant we wanted to get to a certain position before we started to look at other players.[LNB]"We've achieved that but we don't want to stop picking up points and there's a responsibility on Michel and other players to come in and keep the rhythm and good performances going."[LNB]McLeish knows he has a responsibility to lift his players after missing out on a golden opportunity to reach the last four of the FA Cup for the first time in 35 years.[LNB]He said: "I don't feel that much better today than I did after the game but we have got to move on and that is what managing is about and using all your experience to show the players that life goes on.[LNB]"We have done a lot this season and have nothing to be ashamed of. Teams like Manchester United and Liverpool even go out of the cup sometimes.[LNB]"I wasn't dour-faced this morning. You've got to go and pick everyone up and the first person that has to be picked up is the manager and you have to do that yourself.[LNB]"I've had many disappointments. The one thing I've learned is come Monday morning, if you looked as if you are doomed, everyone feels that.[LNB]"The players know they failed on this occasion at Portsmouth but they are capable of moving forward."[LNB]McLeish is also holding out little hope that Blues may be given an FA Cup reprieve were Portsmouth to be kicked out of the competition because of their financial problems.[LNB]He said: "I would be astonished if that were to be the decision. If it happens, I suppose people would take it but we move forward.[LNB]"Portsmouth are in the semi-finals and I don't see that being changed at all nor would I think it would be right for the game if it was."[LNB][LNB]

Source: Team_Talk