Bruce blast for Ghaly

Birmingham boss Steve Bruce has admitted he told Hossam Ghaly to "clear off" after the midfielder criticised his new team-mates and complained about having to undergo an extra fitness training session.

Bruce was less than impressed with the approach of Ghaly during a double training session at the club's Wast Hills complex on Friday and called off the proposed £3million transfer from Tottenham.

Bruce has revealed his reasons to the Birmingham Mail: "His agent left a message and said that he [Ghaly] wasn't happy with the standard of players here. I couldn't believe what I was hearing - and I've kept the message on my voicemail. He was told in no uncertain terms that if he didn't like it, he should clear off."

Bruce continued: "There's no way I'm going to have someone criticising the squad, especially when they are supposed to be their new team-mates.

"And I'm not having anyone upsetting the togetherness and spirit we have worked so hard to build up here.

"I've had this before with a former captain [Kenny Cunningham] complaining about all sorts and I'm not going to keep fighting things like that. Yes, we train our players hard and we expect them to put the work in.

"What we do here was good enough for a World Cup winner [Christophe Dugarry] and so was our club and players.

"Hossam Ghaly came from Tottenham's reserves and we were quite prepared to give him an opportunity to play regularly and establish himself.

"He had had the summer off and after reporting back hadn't trained properly for a couple of weeks or so as the transfer negotiations got going. For the previous four or five days he'd done nothing. He was way, way behind in his fitness."