RELEASED City striker Paul Dickov is contemplating three separate offers as he makes his next career move.

Blackpool and Leicester City are leading the chase for the ex-Scotland international with the former seemingly in the box seat having dangled a two-year player/coaching deal.

But Dickov, who last week visited Toronto and is expecting an offer from them to play in the MLS, will keep his options open for another week before making a decision.

Danny Dichio and Laurent Robert are amongst the best-known players at the Canadian franchise managed by Scot Mo Johnston and coached by John Carver.

The 35-year-old heard he had been released by his former boss Mark Hughes while he was in Canada, so ending hopes of extending his stay with the Blues either in a playing or coaching capacity.

Meanwhile, as first reported in MEN Sport, City are to confirm the arrival of new faces in the backroom staff.

Former Wimbledon Crazy Gang member Glyn Hodges is to be named reserve team coach and Mike Rigg is poised to become scouting overlord as Hughes continues his revamp.

Additions

The Blues boss, who cut his managerial teeth as Wales' chief, has already brought countrymen Mark Bowen and Eddie Niedzwiecki in as his No 2 and first team coach respectively from former club Blackburn.

And he went back to Ewood Park for the latest additions to his boot room team.

Hodges was capped 18 times for Wales having made his name as part of the Wimbledon side that captured the public's imagination in the 1980s.

He also played for Watford and Sheffield United under ex-Dons boss Dave Bassett before moving into coaching and twice managed Barnsley for short spells before becoming the Wales under-21 boss in 2004.

After John Toshack took over as the principality's head coach Hodges headed to Blackburn to become reserve team manager and will take that role at City.

Rigg was formerly chief scout at Rovers and will fulfil a talent spotting role for Hughes. He struck up his working relationship with Hughes, Bowen, and Niedzwiecki while technical director at the Welsh FA. Hughes has repeatedly stressed that there is no sentiment in his appointments merely practicality and says he would back his backroom staff against those at any other Premier League club.

Ability

"What people have to understand is that my backroom staff has the ability to do the job that I ask them to do. They are not here because they are my friends," stressed the manager.

"I have seen so many examples of managers bringing in guys that they have known for years and years and these people cannot do the job they are asked to do which, as a consequence, undermines the manager's position.

"My management team is the best in the Premier League. I would back them against anybody.

"Management a lot of the time is pre-empting things that might go wrong. There is always something coming at you from a different angle so there has to be a degree of being able to predict things.

"Discussing things with your coaches and staff helps that process but at the end of the day they know that I have the final say."

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