Alex McLeish tells angry Aston Villa fans: Let me prove myself and I will win you over

Alex Mcleish (Pete Mariner)

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Newly appointed Aston Villa manager Alex McLeish says he is not concerned about fans protesting his appointment and wants to win them over.

The former Birmingham City boss has been the focus of fierce protest from Villa fans who were angered by chairman Randy Lerner’s decision to approach him to become Gerard Houllier’s successor.

However, McLeish is adamant that he is the right man for the job and has implored fans to get behind him.

He told reporters: “Let me prove myself and I will win you over. It is not a case of proving the fans wrong, I want to go forward with the Villa fans and prove I am the man for this job.”

He added: “I can understand the passion and emotion of football and as long as it doesn’t get out of control I can understand people’s feelings.

“Am I fazed by it? No. Have I had it before? Yes. Have I come out of it stronger? Yes. So I really look forward to the challenge of managing this fantastic football club.”

The Scot’s move across town from Blues led to fierce protests outside Villa Park, but the former Rangers boss is still proud of his connection with Birmingham and said he could not turn down Lerner’s offer.

“To think I have been able to manage both of them Villa and Birmingham is a wonderful honour,” he said.

“I wouldn’t say it was a difficult decision in my career but it was a tough one, it is not every day you get offered a job like this. There is no way I couldn’t have been the manager of Villa.”

It has been suggested that McLeish might raid his old club for potential new signings at Villa, and the Scot intimated that he would consider bringing in some of his former players from St Andrew’s.

“I know there are many good players there but the policy that I have always maintained is not to talk about other clubs’ players,” he said.

However, he added: “I am getting bombarded – we are just going to assess things at the moment. If I thought a Birmingham player could improve Aston Villa, why not?”

McLeish is determined to repay the faith that Lerner has shown but acknowledged that the pressure will be on him after he failed to keep Birmingham in the Premier League last season.

“That’s why I’m so flattered to be chosen by the chairman, Randy Lerner,” he said. “He’s seen something in my CV that’s attracted me to this club. I take a lot of heart from that despite the furore of the past couple of days.

“I know that relegation doesn’t look good, but there were good times at Birmingham City and in my past as a manager.

“Maybe there will be a little bit more pressure on me from that point of view.

“At the same time it’s the remit of any manager to get a good start and a fast start. Fulham will be saying the same thing with Martin Jol.”