DAVID CUFFLEY City boss Peter Grant may be poised to raid former club Celtic in order to bolster his midfield department.Reports north of the border claim the Canaries have had a £600,000 bid rejected for 24-year-old Scotland international Stephen Pearson.

DAVID CUFFLEY

City boss Peter Grant may be poised to raid former club Celtic in order to bolster his midfield department.

Reports north of the border claim the Canaries have had a £600,000 bid rejected for 24-year-old Scotland international Stephen Pearson.

After Saturday's 2-2 draw at Wolves, Grant admitted he was a big admirer of Pearson, who joined Celtic from Motherwell in 2004 for £350,000 and has won five full caps for his country.

“He's a very good player, Stephen, you know. He's one of these guys that would make us better, that's for sure, if he was available,” said Grant.

“He's got great experience, but I don't know what Gordon Strachan's going to do with him. I just noticed he's been out of the team.

“That's the sort of people we're trying to attract to this club - top players. There's no doubt he's a top player but that's up to Celtic more than us.”

Asked whether he had made a definite inquiry about Pearson, he said: “I've inquired about all good players.”

But there was no disguising his admiration for the player.

Celtic chief executive Peter Lawwell is reported to have turned down City's bid and it may spark an auction for Pearson's services, with Derby - who nearly signed the player in the last transfer window - and Cardiff also said to be interested.

Grant reiterated that he wanted to bring in new faces in January, saying: “I'll be trying my damndest, not necessarily to put people out but actually to make us better and have a more balanced squad. I just don't think we've got that balance right yet.

“Great credit to the board that they're willing to back that because they want to go where I want to go - that's the reason I've taken the job, to go to the Premier League, nothing else. Great credit to them. If they back me on it, I'll be absolutely delighted and I'm sure they will because they want to see their club going forward.”

Meanwhile, Grant said City were bitterly disappointed to take just a point from Molineux, after leading twice thanks to Robert Earnshaw's 15th and 16th goals of the season.

Karl Henry scored Wolves' first-half equaliser, while skipper Jody Craddock salvaged a point when he scored more than two minutes into time added on at the end of the game.

Grant summed up his feelings as “anger, frustration, massive disappointment” as City narrowly missed out on a notable West Midlands hat-trick of wins after victories at Brimingham and West Bromwich Albion.

He said: “I don't think many managers will come here and be disappointed to get a point but we're absolutely gutted.

“A goal four minutes into injury time and an offside goal, so it's interesting. I need to go back and find out what the rules are. If it's only three yards offside, does it not count?”

But he was not fully satisfied with Cty's performance.

“I still expect a lot more from this group. I think there's a lot more in them. We're still not doing the simple things well enough yet,” he said.

“They're getting there slowly but surely, but the second goal proves to me they're still in that mentality. We were in a very, very strong position, no danger at all, and we end up losing a goal. I don't want that typical Norwich label with my teams - that we're a soft touch or whatever.”