Birmingham manager Steve Bruce admits he is "devastated" that a section of the club's fans have stopped the Blues from signing midfielder Lee Bowyer. A website petition was set up to keep the Newcastle player, 28, away from St Andrews and he turned down a switch.
"I can't believe that something like this has cost us a really, really good player," said Bruce.
"I'm devastated to be honest. I was really excited about the prospect of Lee coming here after Mikael Forssell."
Bruce was keen to end Bowyer's miserable spell on Tyneside and believes most Birmingham fans wanted him to join the club.
"I believe the majority of our fans were looking forward to Lee arriving," he said.
"We've tried to tell him that he's misjudging the mood and that he's just the kind of player that Birmingham fans take to - but he has some concerns.
"I'm not afraid to say that I rate Lee Bowyer very, very highly as a player. You can talk all you want about his reputation and everything else.
"That simply doesn't interest me. He's a damned good footballer who would be a major asset to our team."
Co-owner David Sullivan added: "Lee has phoned us to say he won't be coming because he's seen all this stuff on the internet and basically he doesn't need any more grief in his life.
"Those Birmingham fans out there who do want him should let us know. Maybe they could help persuade him that he would be welcome."
MMIX
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Match of the Day - Post-match interviews