WOLVERHAMPTON, England (AFP) - Alex McLeish paid tribute to veteran Premier League midfielder Lee Bowyer for his match-winning role in an important victory over local rivals Wolves that keeps Birmingham City on course for top flight survival.
Bowyer, a free signing from West Ham in the summer after he spent the second half of last season helping City win promotion from the Championship, claimed the game's only goal with a superb finish after just three minutes.
McLeish paid tribute to the role played by the club's former owner David Sullivan in the signing and clearly feels that after the 32-year-old's career appeared to be in terminal decline due to injuries and controversies on and off the field, Bowyer still has an important role to play in keeping his club in the top division.
"Bowyer's goal was amazing," said McLeish. "There were a few people who criticised signing him last season.
"A lot of people were suggesting that his legs had gone. But he is answering that. He has five goals already and he is like the Bowyer of old. He has matured and he controls himself much better these days. His goals are a bonus.
"(Former owner) David Sullivan was always obsessed with midfield players scoring goals. Whenever I mentioned anyone to him he would always ask about the number of goals they score. Bowyer gets goals. We thought he would be good for us in the Championship, but he is getting back to his days when he was at Leeds.
"Five goals is an unbelievable return at this stage. But I never had any doubt about him like others did. I did my due diligence and knew that he is the right type. The biggest concern about players when they get older is do they still have the legs and he still has the legs.
"David Sullivan trusted me and we got it right. To get him on a free transfer was a great bit of business."
Bowyer's goal means that Birmingham have won three of their last five games, a run which also includes draws against Manchester City and Liverpool, and the victory, against a dishevelled Wolves side, was far easier than the scoreline suggested.
"It was not painless for me watching, it even looked painless for the players out there," claimed McLeish. "But I thought it was a terrific performance. It was a fantastic performance from all the players. We were awesome from start to finish. We passed it well. We showed great composure and our defending was magnificent.
Wolves manager Mick McCarthy, meanwhile, has now seen his team play eight Premier League games without a victory but, after four-goal defeats by Chelsea and Arsenal in successive games, this was a far more worrying result for the former Ireland manager.
"It is a hugely disappointing experience. It was certainly not the way I was intending it," he said. "I never expected us to play as poorly as that in the first half. We did not compete like we normally do.
"Today is worrying. I am not worried about losing to Arsenal and Chelsea. That was expected. But we were playing Birmingham at home and we were expecting to win and we did not.
"Birmingham deserved their win. They were better than us. We did not start the game very well and it was hard after that. It was about character after that and it was hard.
"I can't lay the defeat at the door of losing to Chelsea. Getting beaten by Chelsea is not the issue. We are at home against Birmingham and we needed a performance and we did not get one.
"Losing 1-0 at home to Birmingham is always hard to take and bound to give me some discomfort - whether we have been brilliant or not."
Wolves now face a home game with fellow strugglers Bolton on Saturday that could define both clubs' seasons.
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