McLeish won't sign Chinese players to make money

16 July 2010 09:00
Birmingham manager Alex McLeish insists he would never sign an Asian player purely as a marketing tool but hopes president Carson Yeung's Hong Kong connections can benefit the club in the future. Birmingham begin a three-match pre-season tour of Hong Kong and China on Sunday when they face a Hong Kong League XI at Hong Kong Stadium. Asia has long been seen as a potentially lucrative market as Premier League clubs attempt to alleviate the ever-increasing financial pressures of the modern game, with Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool all visitors in recent times. McLeish has no intention of trying to exploit the region for purely commercial gains by signing an Asian player but the Scot believes Birmingham's Chinese owners have an integral role to play in recruiting the best young talent the continent produces. "I'm not looking at Asian players in particular but I'm well aware that if we got a guy who was pretty decent, we would quite happily add an Asian player to our squad," said McLeish. "First and foremost, he has to fit the criteria with ability but secondly, there's obviously a commercial angle in that. But I'm not actively looking for Asian players. "Carson and his people really have to flag up the young ones who are there or thereabouts because any Asian who's playing in Europe is now pretty much out of our reach budget-wise. Because of the connection out here in China and Hong Kong, we have to find the younger ones before the other European guys get them."

Source: PA