Aston Villa boss McLeish hopes to hijack Pogrebnyak from Fulham in the summer

English Premier League outfit Aston Villa will attempt to snatch Russian striker Pavel Pogrebnyak from Fulham in the summer, manager Alex McLeish claimed.

Pogrebnyak has joined the Cottagers on a short-term deal with a view of extending it in the summer, but his prolific form in the first three matches for the London club, during which he scored five goals, means that some bigger clubs could try and hijack him.

«Fulham did well in January and brought Pavel Pogrebnyak into the set-up,’ McLeish told the Daily Mirror.

«He is a player who I’ve seen and have been in touch with his agent over the past few years trying to sign him, but the timing was just not quite right. I don’t want to be in the bad books with Fulham talking about their player. He’s a player I flirted with in the past, but I shouldn’t really be talking about someone else’s player... I need to be careful what I’m saying... But we are lacking a bit of experience, and hopefully that is something we can put right,» the Scotsman admitted.