Under his tutelage, the Blues secured the second automatic promotion spot, sealing their promotion with a victory against Reading in May.

After a playing career that saw him work under esteemed manager Sir Alex Ferguson and amass numerous pieces of silverware, among them the European Cup Winners Cup and Super Cup, McLeish accepted his first managerial post at Motherwell in 1994.

During his first season with the Steelmen, 'Big Eck' took his side to second in the Scottish Premier League, finishing behind Rangers, the side he would eventually go on to manage. However, the success of his first year at the helm proved difficult to emulate in the following two seasons, after which he left Fir Park in 1998.

His next move saw him at Hibernian, who were struggling in the SPL upon his arrival. He was unable to prevent their relegation at the end of the 1997/98 season, but managed to guide the Edinburgh outfit back to Scotland's top-flight, winning the First Division title the following season. Back in the SPL, Hibs finished mid-table in their first season and showed massive signs of improvement in the second, finishing in third place and making an appearance in the Scottish Cup final.

McLeish's success at Easter Road attracted the attention of several bigger clubs, most notably Rangers. The former Scotland international was appointed Dick Advocaat's replacement at Ibrox in December 2001.

The Glasgow club was where McLeish really made a name for himself, winning both the Scottish Cup and the Scottish League Cup in his first season. The following year he achieved the domestic treble, beating Old Firm rivals Celtic to the league title in the process. After missing out on the 2003/04 league title, McLeish led the club back to winning ways in 2004/05, when Rangers pipped Celtic to the league trophy on the last day of the season.

The following year, McLeish took his side to the knock-out stages of the Champions League for the first time, reaching the last 16 of the competition. Despite this success in Europe, the club struggled domestically and in February 2006 it was announced McLeish's contract would be terminated at the end of the season.

Having won seven major trophies with one of Scotland's top clubs, McLeish left Ibrox claiming he had achieved all he could in Scottish club football. After a short break he was appointed Scotland manager in January 2007. During his time in charge of his country's national side, McLeish oversaw one of the most momentous victories in the country's recent history, a 1-0 win away to France in the Euro 2008 qualifiers. This, however, proved to be the highlight of a short and ultimately unsuccessful reign, as McLeish's Scotland failed to qualify for the finals in Austria and Switzerland.

He was appointed Birmingham City manager on 28th November 2007, a day after his resignation from the Scotland job. Despite taking their fight against the drop to the last day of the season, McLeish could not save the Midlands strugglers from relegation, and the club joined the Championship the following season.

The 2008/09 season saw the club maintain their place among the promotion contenders for much of the season, with their promotion confirmed in the 2-1 win against Reading.

In his first full season in the Barclays Premier League, McLeish will be out to prove that he has what it takes to succeed among England's elite.