Blues appoint Peter Grant as coach

Birmingham have appointed Peter Grant as first-team coach at St Andrew's.

Grant, who filled a similar role at Albion in 2008/09, succeeds Roy Aitken, who last week left the Premier League club to link up with new boss David O'Leary at United Arab Emirates outfit Al-Ahli.

Blues manager Alex McLeish said today: "I've known Peter for a long time. He was an adversary of mine in my Aberdeen playing days, when he was a stalwart for Celtic.

"He is a competitive man who has been brought up in a winner's environment due to the traditions of Celtic. He has successfully made the transition into becoming a coach and my diligence shows me he is the right man for the job.

"His personality is akin to that of the man we have just lost, Roy Aitken, and that will be a great asset to us."

Former Celtic, Norwich, Reading, Bournemouth and Scotland midfielder Grant brings a wealth of experience.

The 44-year-old left his player-coach post with the Cherries in 2004 to become Alan Pardew's assistant at West Ham, with the pair guiding the Hammers to the FA Cup final in 2006.

A 12-month spell as Norwich boss followed in 2006/07, before becoming first-team coach at the Hawthorns in summer 2008 under the management of Tony Mowbray.

Grant followed his former Celtic team-mate back to the Glasgow giants last summer, for an ill-fated stint back at Parkhead which ended in their dismissals in March this year.

On the transfer front, McLeish, currently leading Blues on their pre-season tour of Hong Kong and China, is set to turn his attentions to AZ Alkmaar striker Moussa Dembele to beef up his strikeforce.

The 23-year-old, who can play either as a central striker or wide on the left, is rated at £5million by the Dutch club and is back on the market after a proposed move to Italian club Fiorentina fell through in a dispute over wages.

McLeish also remains keen on Crystal Palace's England under-19 right-back Nathaniel Clyne and is set to make an improved £1.25million bid, after an initial offer of £750,000 was turned down.