The 35-year-old impressed from Birmingham last season scoring 14 goals.
McLeish said: “Kevin can still cause problems for defenders at this level, absolutely.
“But coming off the bench is where I see Kevin being used most for us this season.
“People will be thinking: ‘why does he not start him?’
“Tactically we put on the younger runners and Phillips goes on when defenders are tired.
“But I know his quality and he’s got more experience than James McFadden, Cameron Jerome and Garry O’Connor.
“He brought all his nous to the team and he was very bright against Portsmouth.
“He might feel frustrated as well but I have spoken to him and I hope that he buys into the gameplan.
“Putting him on at the start might not work as effectively. Is he all right with it? I’ve spoken to him and he seems okay with that.
“I hope he’s still of that mind.
“I’m not ruling out that he doesn’t start games but I think he’s going to be more effective coming on in that kind of role.”
