Bruce braced for Heskey bids

Updated 14.08 Fri Oct 17 2008
Keywords: Liverpool, England, sport, Premier League, football, Emile Heskey, transfers, Steve Bruce, Wigan

Steve Bruce has adopted a pragmatic attitude amid reports that several clubs are lining up to make bids for in-form Emile Heskey.

The 30-year-old Wigan striker is out of contract at the end of the season, and boss Bruce is expecting a host of bids to come in the January transfer window.

"Of course, the 'paper speculation now is that he's leaving us - that's the downside of it - but everybody involved with the club is delighted for him" - Steve Bruce

Heskey, once the butt of fans' jokes due to his poor goalscoring record and large build is keen on playing in the Champions League after returning to the international scene in the past year and playing a crucial role in England's march to the World Cup finals.

Bruce is realistic about his chances of keeping the former Liverpool ace. He said: "It's great that we've got an England centre-forward playing for Wigan.

"Of course, the 'paper speculation now is that he's leaving us - that's the downside of it - but everybody involved with the club is delighted for him.

"I'm sure there's a lot of clubs that want these boys now - and for a smaller, so-called unfashionable club, that's always the danger. If the big boys come circling then you've got a problem - we're not going to shy away from that."

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