Ex-Glasgow Rangers Coach Weighs Up The Pros And Cons Of Leeds United Signing Reading's Olise

Former Glasgow Rangers coach Alex McLeish has weighed up the pros and cons of Leeds United making a move for Nigeria-eligible attacking midfielder Michael Olise in the January transfer window.

Though the Scottish manager acknowledges that the Reading rising star is a talented player, he does not think that the France youth international can immediately replace the experienced Leeds United player Pablo Hernandez.

Olise has been linked with a plethora of clubs in the Premier League and abroad following the banner season he's having at Reading, with a hand in 11 goals (4 goals, 7 assists) from 20 games in the Championship.

"I thought I could get the new Tommy Coyne, the new Paul Lambert… It’s not quite as easy as that," McLeish explained to Football Insider.

"[Olise] certainly won’t have all the answers that Hernandez has got because he [Hernandez] is a proven professional who’s had a long, long time in the game. But Olise’s got great potential.

"Of course, if you don’t have the money that the big guns have, then you should bring in young players. I was never afraid to bring young players and put them in the team. I did it at many of my clubs, I always knew they’d make mistakes but they should be allowed to make mistakes.

"But sometimes it can risk you being in the relegation zone, when you don’t have enough quality or nous in the team to be in the higher regions of the league."

Liverpool, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Arsenal and Crystal Palace have also been credited with an interest in Olise who has a release clause of eight million pounds and is contracted to the Royals until the end of next season.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel