The striker has undergone keyhole surgery on a knee injury and the Blues coach confirmed the operation went well.

McLeish told the club's official website: "The operation went very well and James feels good.

major blows

"It's important that we got him sorted out for the games that will be crucial at the end of the campaign.

"Hopefully now he'll be back in two or three weeks but we'll be guided by Neil McDiarmid (chief physio) and his team.

"We can ill afford to lose players like James McFadden and Kapo, from what is a small and inexperienced squad.

"These are major blows to any team never mind Birmingham City but especially to us when you don't have the resources."

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